The Sound of a Heart Breaking
by Lockea Stone
Summary: Modern AU. Can a broken heart ever be put back together? Riku, a slave in a classist society, desires freedom. Sora, a naive noble, desires love. In a relationship tempered with lies, can either find what their heart desires?  multiple pairings
1. Riku: Journey

**Author's Note**: Well guys, here it is. The revisions I promised months ago. I hated where the story was going, so I overhauled the whole damn thing and started over. I changed the narrative style (as the prologue shows), and so now this story is much, much longer._ Even if you read the original version, read the revision because it WILL contain new information that wasn't in the original._

I can't promise anything as far as updates go, but I will try to be fairly regular. About once a month or so. Part of this is because of how long the chapters are, the other part comes with the territory of being an engineering student. Free time, what is this that you speak of? I haven't had free time in over a year!

**WARNINGS**: Though I rated this story as M, it is actually a very, very high T/low M for references to sex, including **nonconsensual sex (rape)** and **prostitution**, as well as references to **torture**, **violence**, and **abuse**. This story also contains references to polyfidelity (see story notes for details), heterosexual and homosexual relationships. If ANY of this bother you, I urge you not to read, as I can be a brutal writer and I don't always pull my punches.

**Longer Summary**: Riku is no stranger to feeling powerless. Born a slave in an oligarchial society, he's experienced the worst degradations that can befall a human being, and come through each one bearing just one more scar on his heart. Yet even still, Riku has the tenacity to believe that he will one day buy his freedom. When he is bought by Lord Hikaru that dream seems closer than ever before. Yet an ill-planned, fragile and unsteady romance with his master's youngest son, Sora, threatens to unravel all of Riku's carefully laid plans. Can Riku, who has never been able to control his own life, find the courage to seize what his heart desires, or is he merely doomed to a life as plaything of the rich?

**Story Notes**: _Polyfidelity_, for those of you who don't know, refers to the idea of closed circle relationships, where members often have more than one partner, but partnership is restricted based on the approval of the other members in the relationship. _Paramour_ is a slightly archaic word referring to a mistress, actually. But it was used in a positive sense, and sometimes women had paramours too. In this story, it refers to the partners in a polyfidelous relationship.

* * *

**Part One: Touch**

**Prologue: Riku: Journey**

_Pyreflies  
__That's how it ends.  
__Ashes dancing on the wind_

Riku slipped his shoes off and buried his feet in the sand, delighting in the feeling of the warm particles between his toes. Kairi and Axel had already run in ahead of him, and were splashing merrily in the warm ocean water. Summer had finally come to the island, and his paramours were determined to celebrate while they could. After all, this was their last chance.

"Riku!" Kairi called from the water, waving her hands at him from where she stood, waist deep in pale blue water. Her skin tanned from the sun. "Get in! I need you to help me dump Axel!"

From just a short distance away, the other redhead glared at Kairi and, with a mischievous grin grabbed her around the waist, hoisting her out of the water. "You won't be the one dumping me, I'll be the one dumping you, got it memorized?" He tossed her down and held her beneath the water for a few seconds.

When Kairi came back up, she was sputtering but laughing as she splashed Axel with water. From the shoreline, further up behind Riku, he heard Namine's exasperated cry of "Would you please not kill my sister, Axel?" and Larxene's amused chortle. Neither blond had much interest in swimming, preferring to sit in the shade and watch everyone else get wet and sandy as they cuddled with each other.

Riku just grinned and did as Kairi told him too. "You're both idiots, you know that, right?" He told the two as soon as he was within arm's reach.

Kairi pretended to look offended and slapped his shoulder. "We're entitled to it! After all, we just got done taking that Yevon-damned bloody awful test to end all tests. That stupid thing was so hard! I don't know about you, but my brain is completely fried!"

Ah yes, the reason for their impromptu celebration; the SIAT. It stood for "slave intelligence and aptitude test" but Axel had taken to calling it the Shi-at, or "that shitty test." Not every slave took it, though. Only those who were being considered for special training took the SIAT. As much as Axel and Kairi complained, however, the SIAT was their one chance at getting out of Destiny Labor Camp. Because, despite the seeming evidence to the contrary, Riku, Axel, Kairi, Larxene, and Namine were all slaves.

Riku shook his head sadly, but was smiling broadly as he said, "It's supposed to be hard. It's an _intelligence _test. But I'm sure you did fine."

Kairi rolled her blue eyes, "Oh, sure, that's easy for you to say, Mr. I-get-prefect-thirty-sixes-on-everything." She grabbed Riku's hand in one of hers, and with the other one grabbed Axel's. Both teenage boys just shared a look as Axel rolled his own eyes over Kairi's head. "Well, whatever. If it will be, it will be. I'll just cherish what I've got, even if I never get to have it again." She squeezed both their hands.

"Aww, Kairi." Riku teased. "We love you too, don't we Axel?"

Axel rolled his eyes again. "Yeah, whatever, 'course we love the conniving little nuisance. How can we not?" He deadpanned, to Kairi's exasperation and Riku's amusement.

"Boys!" Kairi cried, throwing her hands up in the air. "I don't know why I put up with you idiots!"

"Because you love us!" Riku and Axel replied, in unison, as Axel added (to Kairi's further annoyance), "Got it memorized?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it."

_Cries  
__That's how is begins.  
__A child born to the bleakness of life_

It's a mere week later that Riku stood outside Kairi's home—the tiny single room shack she shared with Namine and Larxene—watching as Kairi hugged her sister one last time. Kairi was crying, even though she claimed it was out of happiness. Riku could guess otherwise. Riku eyed well-dressed man who stood a few meters away, beside the guard warily, his expression openly hostile.

"Promise to write me." Kairi whispered, reluctant to let go of her sister. "Promise not to forget me."

"Of course not." Namine reassured her. "I will write you as much as I can, I promise, and I won't forget you. I swear I won't."

"It's so selfish of me, but I don't want you to go. Even though I know you're going someplace _way_ better than here."

"I know. I don't want to leave you either. I wish I could take you with me."

"I know, I know. I love you, Namine." Kairi whispered, burying her face into her twin sister's shoulder.

"I love you too, Kairi."

When they finally disentangled from each other's arms, a few moments later, Namine walked right up to Riku, her expression unusually stern, considering how soft-spoken the girl was. "Watch out for my big sis for me, ya hear. I know she can be a bit of a flake at times, so try to keep her from losing her mind."

Riku smiled slightly. "I will Namine. You don't have to worry about that. You just focus on yourself. Be good, do good. Make us all proud."

"You too, Riku." She gave him a brief hug and a peck on the cheek. "I believe in you."

She turned around and walked toward the man, her new master, and that was the last time Riku or Kairi saw Namine.

_Journey  
__The in between  
__The path from cries to pyreflies_

Another two weeks later, the results from the SIAT came in. Riku sat in stunned silence as one of the local school teachers beamed at him from across the table, the portfolio containing the test scores and his net worth potential.

"Thirty-five…" Riku whispered, shocked. "That's…"

"Remarkable, especially for a slave from a labor camp. You've got the highest score out of all your peers." The teacher told him, smiling.

"I… see…" He picked up one of the sheets of paper spread out across the table. It was the bidding estimations. Essentially, it was a prediction of his supposed worth, based on his score and preexisting bond price. Riku could feel his hand trembling as he glanced over the numbers on the paper. "This is…" He tried to push down his shock. "This is far more than my brother and I combined!"

The teacher nodded. "Yes, it is. But believe me, there's already been quite a few bids placed on you, Riku. You are definitely going to be sold, but we won't know to whom until the bid closes. Though, the buyers all look promising. Radiant Garden Research Lab… Vector Imperial Chemistry… The National Administration of Air Ship Transportation… Hikaru Physical Sciences Lab… any of these would no doubt give you an education and a good place to work."

"I know that, but what about my brother?" Riku replied.

"What about your brother? The bidding is for you."

Riku shook his head. "No, I mean, with such a high bid price, why can't it go to pay off his bond too? Why does it only have to be me? There's more than enough for him too…"

"Riku…" The teacher frowned. "We discussed this before you came up for testing. Destiny Agricultural is looking to make a profit. There's no way any business would limit their income like that. Besides, your brother has Lunasis as well, doesn't he?"

The pale haired boy nodded, reaching up self consciously to touch his shoulder length white hair. It was the tell-tale sign that he had the life threatening genetic condition, Lunasis.

"Average life expectancy for a slave with Lunasis is not very high. There's no way anyone would spend money on a sick, unskilled laborer."

Riku scowled. "I know that! I just…"

"Riku, think about yourself. You have a bright future, a chance to buy your freedom. Don't waste that."

_Impermanent, malleable, erasable  
__Meanwhile, I'll be waiting  
__For remembrance_

"So… Do I look like I've just had mind-blowing sex?"

Riku carefully tucked the small blue bottle of green and white pills away in the pocket of his pants and turned to regard Guardsman Fair with a look that was part annoyed and part incredulous. "No, you don't and I don't see why you won't just let me repay you. If the other guards find out about this, you'll be the one to take all the heat."

Zackary Fair, the young black-haired guard who was, in Riku's opinion, the only decent guard in the world, simply shrugged and said. "You're a cute kid, Riku, but I'm not interested. I'll deal with the guards teasing me about being a prude if they find out. It's not like it's that far from the truth." He grinned lopsidedly, showing off even white teeth.

"You can say that again." Riku teased. Guardsman Fair was notoriously picky about his partners; even the slaves had noticed. Riku coughed lightly, and Zack cast him a look that was clearly worried.

"Hey, you take some of that medicine too. That cough doesn't sound too good."

The pale haired teen shook his head. "It's fine. Sephiroth needs the medicine more than I do. I can survive another week or two without treatment."

"But what if it's an infection? You might develop pneumonia."

Riku waved off Zack's concerns with a motion of his hand. "It won't happen. My brother's more important."

"Riku…" The dark haired man admonished gently, gripping the teenager by his thin wrist and pulling him into an unexpected hug. Zack was the hugging sort, but Riku was made distinctly uncomfortable by the unannounced physical contact. "You shouldn't talk like that, as though you aren't important. When was the last time you acted selfishly?"

Pale green eyes narrowed as Riku scowled, but didn't quite dare to pull away from his superior. "I _am_ acting selfishly." He replied softly, "Why else do you think I worked so hard to score so high on the SIAT? I want out of this life, even if it means leaving my loved ones."

"It's not selfish to want to get out of here. And you're far too intelligent to spend the rest of your life as a whore in a labor camp."

Riku winced at the word _whore_, even though he'd heard it often enough to describe his position, even if it was a technically inaccurate description, and derogatory enough for it to bother Riku. He didn't get a chance to reply before the barrack's room door creaked open and another guard stepped inside.

He cast one quick, vaguely condescending glance at Riku, still wrapped up in Zack's arms in what Riku guessed might have looked like a lover's embrace to an outside observer, and said to Zack, "Playtime's over, we have work to do. You can come back and fuck the whore later."

Zack shrugged, managing to look at least a little put out about the loss of his supposed catamite. He released Riku, who took it as his cue to leave and slipped out the door past the other guard, not bothering with any sort of reaction when the guard, predictably, slapped his ass as he walked by. He was used to it.

Outside the large main complex building that was the heart and center of the labor camp, the guardhouse, Riku wasted no time in sprinting down well remembered trails back to his own dwelling. The camp was laid out over the smallest island of the five-island chain that made up the annexed-territory of Destiny Islands, under the control of Radiant Garden. The fruit orchards that were the reason for the camp's existence took up most of the island, and the entire sister island close by. The rest of the island was lightly wooded and scattered with the shanty, impermanent, cheaply constructed shacks that made up housing for the slaves. Riku's own home was no different.

He skidded to a stop in front of his house, narrowly missing Kairi who was standing on the path outside, her face twisted in a frown, waiting for him. "Kairi! What are you doing outside? I thought you were watching Sephiroth for me."

Kairi glared at him. "One of these days, Riku, I would like very much to strangle your brother in his sleep. Gleefully." She told him vehemently.

Riku sighed. "What did he do this time?"

"He was Sephiroth, of course! I tell him to rest and he insists on working. I try to do anything and he tells _me_ to just let _him_ do it. I try to be the nice little brother's paramour, doing all the nice things good paramours do and he just brushes me off! And speaking of paramours, where is _his_ good-for-nothing gods-damned paramour anyway?! This is supposed to be his job!"

"Who knows? This is Gen we're talking about, after all." Genesis, nicknamed Gen, was Sephiroth's young and very lazy paramour, who could be relied on for exactly two things: jealous possessiveness and memorized poetry. Riku wondered what the hell it was that his brother saw in the annoying redhead, but kept his mouth shut.

"Hah, I'd enjoy strangling _him_ in his sleep as well." Kairi motioned with her hands, mimicking the action of strangling someone.

Riku laughed. "I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't be." Kairi's angry expression faded into gentle concern, as she changed the subject. "Are you all right? You were up at the guardhouse, weren't you?"

"I'm fine. It's nothing."

"If you're sure." A small frown, nearly imperceptible, and Kairi slid up closer to Riku, wrapping her arms around his slender waist and pressing against him. "Hey, you know we haven't spent time together, just the two of us, since before we took the SIAT."

Riku returned her hug, leaning down to kiss her gently on the lips. "I'm sorry. I'm a bad paramour, aren't I?" He teased.

Kairi shrugged. "Distracted is more like it." She teased back. "Why don't we spend some time tonight, just the two of us? Come over to my place. I've missed having you to myself."

"I will, if that's what you want." Riku promised, kissing her again.

She smiled at him. "Okay, it's a deal." She sounded like she was in a much better mood now, and she wasted no time in sprinting off, leaving Riku alone outside his house.

Riku shook his head with an amused sigh, and turned to head inside.

Sephiroth, Riku's older brother by nearly seven years, was standing at the workbench against the far wall of the room, busily at work with jars of extracts and herbs scattered around him. Riku just sighed as he stepped up behind his brother and said, "You're supposed to be resting right now, not up and making things."

Sephiroth didn't reply immediately, but he did point one fine boned finger at a tiny jar of crushed herbs that looked like tea, and said. "Give that to Kairi when you see her next."

Riku picked up the jar and inspected it. "What is this?"

"Tea to help cure pre menstrual syndrome. It also helps relax the body and calm the mind. She seemed a bit uptight today." Sephiroth's voice was carefully monotonous, but Riku got the impression he was secretly amused.

Riku couldn't help it. He laughed. "As far as jokes go, Seph, this one is just mean. She's only uptight because you weren't listening to her. Honestly, for someone who makes it a point to know a lot about illnesses, you sure are stubborn when it comes to your own health." Remembering the pills that he had gotten from Zack, Riku pulled the bottle out of his pocket and set it on the workbench, next to Sephiroth's hand. "That should help reverse the muscle loss and stop the infection from spreading."

Sephiroth cast a quick glance at the bottle, before halting his work and turning to regard Riku with cool eyes and a blank expression. "Did you?"

He didn't even need to finish the sentence for Riku to know what he was asking. Riku shook his head. "No. I got them from Guardsman Fair, and he's as notoriously picky as usual."

"Even you can't make everyone fall in love with you." Satisfied, the longhaired man turned back to his work, ignoring the pills to Riku's annoyance.

Riku rolled his eyes. "Thank Ramuh for small favors." He muttered, somewhat bitterly. He turned and walked away, pausing in the doorway to look back. "I forgot to tell you earlier, but… I'm being sold."

Sephiroth's hands stopped moving, the only sign that he'd heard. For a long while there was silence, before the older man said calmly, "I figured as much."

Riku turned away. "I'm sorry." He replied, and left.

_Unsteady, withheld, fragile  
__Meanwhile I'll be searching  
__For validation_

Again, Kairi was crying. Riku watched helplessly, fighting back his own urge to cry, as she buried her face in her arms and tried to stop the tears. Behind her, Axel had his arms wrapped around her waist in an uncharacteristic show of kindness and affection, comforting her.

Riku wished he could think of something comforting to say to her, but even "It'll be all right," felt weirdly inappropriate in this situation. Probably because he had no way of knowing if it _would_ be all right.

"We knew this day would come." Axel said softly, refusing to meet Riku's eyes.

Riku nodded. "Yeah. We just didn't think it would come so soon."

Axel didn't say anything, just stared intently downward at the top of Kairi's head. For a long while, they were silent. "I don't want to say goodbye." Axel finally whispered.

Before Riku knew what he was doing, he had his arms wrapped around both Axel and Kairi, sandwiching the girl between her two paramours. She wasted no time burying her face in Riku's t-shirt, clinging to him with no desire to ever let go. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Kairi replied. "We know, we know."

Riku pulled away slightly so he could see the girl's face, tear streaked and dirty. He cupped her face between his hands and kissed her slowly, softly, before pulling away to do the same to Axel. "I love you both. So much more than I can say. I'm sorry it has to end this way."

Sephiroth had remained behind the group, standing under the lean-to beside their home, his arms folded across his chest. His elusive paramour, Genesis, was seated beside him, vibrant red against Sephiroth's pale white. Riku went to see them.

"So it is that the time should come for you to leave, has it?" Genesis asked. Riku was used to the older man's overly flowery language, and the way he always seemed to be quoting something; a book, a poem, a song.

Riku nodded. "They're waiting for me right now." He glanced over at Sephiroth, the older man unmoved and unchanging. "I just wanted to say goodbye."

Genesis nodded graciously to him, looking like a regal cat. There was a reason very few people liked the flamboyant redhead; that he had a very obvious superiority complex was one of them. "'Even if the morrow…'" he began, only to be cut off by twin warnings of "Genesis!" from both Riku and Sephiroth. He quoted that line often enough that even the ever-patient Sephiroth had gotten tired of it. The redhead shrugged it off, unaffected.

"Remember to write." Sephiroth told him, and Riku nodded, knowing that that was the most he could hope to get out of his aloof brother.

"I will."

It was better that than a goodbye, Riku reflected later, as he allowed Guardsman Fair to chain his arms behind his back before a blond haired man who'd introduced himself as Ingus Altney, a man who worked for Riku's new master, took him away. Riku allowed himself to be ushered onto the ferry to the mainland, and refused to look back at the tiny island where he was born and raised. He refused to look back and see the people he was leaving behind.

He couldn't. Not when he had so much to gain… and so much more to lose.

_Meanwhile  
__I won't let my journey  
__End like this_

* * *

I'm stealing Scribbler's format and putting unknown characters and obscure references at the end (only really obscure ones, otherwise this list is way too long). This makes the top look less daunting, doesn't it? Let me know which you all prefer!

_It was the tell-tale sign that he had the life threatening genetic condition, Lunasis._

Lunasis is a reference to the Lunites from Final Fantasy IV. The Lunites themselves had varied appearances but the main character of FF4, Cecil, is a half Lunite with white hair and blue eyes (his brother Golbez, to clear up some confusion for the Dissidia fans, was brown haired and violet eyed). The condition itself, however, is more along the lines of Geostigma from Final Fantasy VII.

_Zackary Fair, the young black-haired guard who was, in Riku's opinion, the only decent guard in the world_

Zack is a minor character from Final Fantasy VII, appearing only in Cloud's flashbacks. He is shown as a cheerful and friendly guy who was close to Sephiroth and Cloud both before his rather tragic end. He gave up his life for Cloud's and as a result Cloud spends most of FF7 believing he is Zack. Zack's a shameless flirt (no, really, Crisis Core proves it) and has a very short attention span at times. Some fans believe Zack is a nickname, and I've seen fanon name him everything from Zachary to Isaac.

_Genesis, nicknamed Gen, was Sephiroth's young and very lazy paramour, who could be relied on for exactly two things: jealous possessiveness and memorized poetry._

Genesis is a character only appearing in the Final Fantasy VII complication... er compilation. His quote sums up his personality. He's kind of irritating, actually. "Even if the morrow is barren of promise, nothing shall forestall my return" is perhaps Genesis's most famous line, and is known as The End of Loveless, which is the name of the play that Genesis is always reading in Crisis Core.

_"Thank Ramuh for small favors."_

A recurring character in the Final Fantasy series, Ramuh is most often a summon of some sort (Esper, Eidolon, etc.), so he occupies a place similar to a deity. He usually has the appearance of an old man.

_a blond haired man who'd introduced himself as Ingus Altney_

Ingus (sometimes called Ignus) is one of the named main characters of the Final Fantasy III remake. He is a knight in love with Princess Sara Altney, and though the love is requited, they are both aware of the difference in rank between them. Ingus is rational, polite, and likes to think things through rather than rush right in.

Please consider feeding the author reviews. She would much appreciate the feedback.


	2. Hajimemashite

**AN**: You're getting this chapter two weeks early for two reasons and two reasons only. 1) I am swamped for the next two weeks, as I am hosting a panel at an anime convention in two weeks and 2) My sister will be cosplaying at Sakurcon this weekend. If you're going to be there, go hunt down either a Duo Maxwell (Friday, Sunday) or a female Ciel Phantomhive (pink dress, Saturday) and tell her that Lockea sent you. She'll know what you're talking about.  
Speaking of Yaoi, has anyone besides me read the Ai No Kusabi novels? I've been reading them like crazy these last few weeks and I am just STRUCK by how beautifully written they are. AnK is a deep, intriguing tangled mess not unlike this story. I just wish I was as good a writer as Reiko Yoshihara.

_Hajimemashite_, for those who don't know, is a Japanese word which literally means 'we are meeting for the first time.' However, it carries a deeper meaning that, in English, would be equivalent to saying "It's nice to meet you, please think of me kindly." There's no real single word equivalent in English, which is why this is one of the few chapters to have a Japanese title.

**This chapter is dedicated to Sakura-chan79, for being awesome, and to Le Shea (from LJ) for being the only two to leave reviews. While I appreciate all readers, reviewers have a special, special place in my heart. I love you guys!**

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**Chapter 1: Hajimemashite**

"He looks like his mother."

Sara picked up the manila portfolio that the Director had carelessly tossed onto the desk, opening it up to reveal a black and white photo of a young man with short pale hair and large light-colored eyes. The pale skin of his face was distorted by an old looking bruise around his eye, which Sara guessed must have been the aftermath of a black eye. The picture was an old one, as the subject in question was seventeen but looked to be about thirteen or fourteen in the photo. Still, he was very pretty. Far prettier than any boy Sara had ever seen before. Beneath the picture was the detailed academic profile of the subject, and the page underneath that included photographs and information on his family. Sara glanced at the photos of his mother and father and had to disagree with the Director's statement; he looked more like his father.

"He has very good test scores and it looks like he did very well in schooling." Sara replied neutrally.

"Of course he did. It's to be expected."

Sara frowned at the Director's tone, closing and handing the portfolio back to him. She knew he was annoyed. She'd known him, worked for him, long enough to recognize the nearly imperceptible shifts in his mood. "You could have just said no, you know. If you didn't want to buy a slave. I still think you give into your sons far too often."

The Director sighed, and accepted the portfolio, setting it on his desk. "It's not as though I have no use for a slave. Cloud makes a good case, even if I disapprove of the twins' motives."

Sara laughed. The twins, the Director's youngest sons, just wanted a playmate. She didn't think that was such a bad idea, since the boys, especially the older one, were far too secluded for their own good. "Well, Cloud always was the sensible one. Still, if you're so against it, you should have just said no. It might even do the boys some good to realize that they _don't_ have you wrapped around their little fingers."

"Sara," The Director warned, tiredly, rubbing his forehead as though he had a headache. "Don't give me advice on how to parent my own children. Despite our history, you are still my servant and you are speaking out of bounds."

Sara shrugged, but let the subject drop. "I'm sorry. They _are_ good kids, though. Sometimes I just wonder if they know how lucky they are."

The Director nodded absently, and Sara noticed, not for the first time, the streaks of gray through his dirty blond hair, and how much older that made him appear. "Sometimes I wonder the same thing. But they take after their mother in that regard."

Sara smiled a little, and covered the Director's hand with her own. "Careful, Director, you're letting your soft side show." She teased.

The Director scowled at her, blue eyes flashing under his glasses. "Whatever. Your husband should be back with the slave this afternoon. Make sure he's cleaned and dressed properly before my sons see him. I won't have riff-raff appearing in my home like that."

He waved her away, and Sara accepted the clear dismissal with grace, leaving the Director alone in his office.

* * *

The boys were gone for the afternoon. At their father's insistence, Cloud had dragged Sora and Roxas out on some sort of fun outing, probably hiking, since Roxas hated people and Sora needed activities that let him get his energy out. Hiking was one of the few activities the twins mutually enjoyed.

This left Sara and the Director as the only ones in the household that day, and with the Director sequestered away in his office buried under a mound of paperwork, Sara pretty much had the large house to herself. The rarity of the event was such that Sara, having finished all her work cleaning, didn't hesitate to borrow a novel from the kid's entertainment room (it was on a bookshelf underneath Cloud's military fiction, Roxas's speculative fiction and romance novels. Hiding in the midst of Sora's diverse mess of books, most of which he never actually read, but it looked interesting), made a cup of tea for herself, and took a seat on the front porch to wait for Ingus to come back with the new slave. She'd seen his name on his profile, but couldn't remember it. Rick or Rika or something. Something pretty to go with his lovely face.

As it turned out, Sara didn't have to wait long. The blond haired woman was just finishing up chapter two of Sora's book, in which the main character's boyfriend got kidnapped and the hero had to go after him— oh cliché!—when she heard the crunch of gravel as the company car pulled up the long driveway to the front of the house.

She set the book aside, but remained on the porch as she watched Ingus get out, walk around to the other side, and open the passenger side door to help a young-looking teenager climb out, carefully, for the youth had his hands bound behind him. Sara frowned, it was ludicrous to tie the child up, as though he were a particularly willful animal that might balk at the first chance that presented itself.

Sara couldn't let the frown linger, though, and banished it completely a moment later, replacing that with a reassuring smile. She hurried down to greet them, kissing her husband as though they hadn't seen each other in days, when in fact it had only been a few hours. She tried not to stare as the boy rather studiously kept his eyes trained on his feet, where a pair of ratty sneakers were all that protected his feet from hot asphalt. Sara made a mental note to remedy that quickly. The boy looked like he might fit into some of Cloud's old clothes…

In truth, this boy, whose name eluded Sara but whose unique facial structure gave him an unforgettable beauty, was far from the first slave the Hikaru family owned. Years ago, Lady Director Hikaru (the current director's deceased wife) had owned two slaves, a pair of absolutely brilliant but highly eccentric twins. The girl in the pair had acted just like this boy; hiding her face and trying to go unnoticed. Meanwhile, her brother had glared and glowered, even as the former director had laughed and reassured them. However, Lady Hikaru had been a scientist, and Lord Hikaru was anything but. He had no real need for a slave like this, except that his children had pressured him into it.

Thus, Sara felt her maternal instincts, not having been exercised in a while, rear their ugly, sentimental heads. She found herself pulling away from Ingus before she realized it, as she gently took hold of the boy's chin, forcing his eyes to meet hers. The photo in his file had been black and white, but now she saw that his eyes were green, which was an immediate indicator that he had the wasting disease, Lunasis. She made a mental note to speak with the director regarding prescriptions. "Hello," Softly, gently, "I'm Sara Altney. Ingus is my husband. We work for your new master. I'll be the one in charge of you while you're in his household."

The slave met her eyes easily, and held her gaze well enough that Sara felt confidence returning. His voice, when he replied, did not waver or break. "Yes, ma'am." He spoke softly, with a lilt of an accent that Sara hadn't heard in a long while.

Her smile broadened. "Please, call me Sara. And what may I call you?"

"Riku, ma—I mean, Sara."

A simple name. No last name to tact on at the end. Slaves had numbers for last names, but just as one never thought about the serial number on a computer or a chair, no one thought of a slave's number as part of their names.

"Well then Riku, why don't we get you cleaned and settled in? I'm afraid the Director is hard at work doing whatever it is he does all day long, and his sons have taken advantage of the beautiful weather to go on a trip. Fortunately, that means you can take all the time you want in the bath." She smiled as she said this, motioning single handedly for Ingus to release the boy's wrists. From the way Riku returned a small smile, Sara knew that, aside from initial anxiety about being sold, Riku would make a smooth adjustment and become a welcome member of the household in no time.

As Riku rubbed his wrists where the handcuffs had left faint red welts, Sara turned back to her husband. "Why handcuffs?" She questioned, carefully keeping her tone neutral.

Ingus shrugged, sweeping one broad hand through his honey blond hair in thought. "Protocol for slave transport. Security has been strict lately, what with the uprising at Sandstorms and the news of illegal trafficking currently saturating the news. It used to be that in front of the body and with soft rope was considered enough of a binding, now the checkpoints even check which type of handcuff you're using. I'm afraid tender wrists and mild discomfort are a small price compared to the fine for improperly transporting a slave. Plus, they would have impounded him, since he's not my slave."Sara nodded, understanding his reasoning.

From the way Riku scoffed quietly at the words "mild discomfort", Sara guessed that he had been more than mildly discomforted by a three hour trip with his hands chained awkwardly behind him. She reached out absentmindedly and massaged the teenager's shoulder, ignoring his slight flinch at the unexpected contact. "It sounds like you could use a good soak." She reassured him, and he relaxed almost immediately. Yep, settling in already.

Ingus took this as his cue to leave. He kissed Sara again, "I'll go inform the director that I've returned. I'll see you tonight?"

"Yes, after dinner. I'll probably be a bit late, so don't wait up for me." Sara replied absently, already ushering the boy up the stairs to the house. She didn't dally in escorting him to the bathroom in the servant's suite of the house, where Riku's room would be. As the only live-in servant in the house, he would have the large communal bathroom all to himself, which included a rather indulgent bath. The suite itself had sat empty since the death of Lady Hikaru, but Sara had cleaned it earlier that day to prepare for the boy's arrival. As she showed him the rooms, she heard him gasp behind her, mostly likely surprised by the size. Truthfully, though, the whole of the suite was still smaller than the manor's master bedroom, but Sara could still understand his surprise.

"The bathroom's in here." Sara informed the boy, startling him from his self-indulgent gawking. She led him in to where a communal shower and the bath were. "You're the only one who will be living in this suite, so the shower and bath are all yours." She showed him where she'd placed the toiletries he'd need earlier that day. "Go ahead and take a shower. I'm going to go find you some better clothes and then I'll be back to check on you."

Riku nodded in answer, but didn't move until after Sara had left the bathroom.

* * *

Alone for the first time since being sold, Riku allowed himself to sigh, the breath causing his shoulders to sag as his whole body seemed to bend in on itself. He sat down on the cool tile of the bathroom and looked around. The tub, set in the ground, looked large enough for several people, which made Riku a bit curious. It was rather indulgent of a master, allowing such a large bath for mere servants.

Removing his shirt was painful. His arms had been chained behind him for the last three and a half hours, and his shoulders were painfully cramped in such a way that Riku couldn't even raise his arms over his head. Thankfully, his pants, shoes, and underwear were easier to remove, and when he turned on the shower the water that came from the fountainhead was hot and soothing. He couldn't remember ever taking a hot shower, but now he understood why Genesis claimed it was the thing he missed most about freedom. No! He couldn't think about the eccentric red-head. That part of his life was behind him, and he had to focus on the here and now. The water stung as it hit the open wounds on his back, but it was a good kind of pain, and Riku appreciated the distraction it gave him.

When his shoulders felt loose enough to allow Riku to reach above his head, he took his time washing his hair, and inspecting the locks as they went from a faded dirty brown color to the pristine white they were supposed to be. Riku's hair had always been something of a vanity for the slave, but he couldn't remember the last time he'd actually washed it. The split ends needed a trim, but for now the feeling of clean hair was enough.

When he felt sufficiently clean, Riku turned off the water and regarded the bath curiously. He'd read about this, once, a long time ago. Bathing was once regarded as a social act, and people would go to public bathhouses to socialize and share the day's news. More affluent families had their own for their servants, since the fee for bathhouses could become expensive later. Now, however, with only one occupant, the whole process seemed absurd. But the temptation to just soak in the warm water overrode Riku's incredulity, and he indulged himself, _just this once_.

He spent the next few minutes soaking carelessly in the water, relaxed by the warmth and easily lost in his own thoughts. It was the sound of a gasp and the heavy thump of cloth hitting the tile floor. Riku startled upright and spun to see Sara standing in the doorway, her hands over her mouth as the clothing she was carrying lay in a heap on the ground.

"S-Sara?" Riku asked, stumbling over the words out of concern.

"Your back…" Sara trailed off, not looking at Riku as she bent to retrieve the clothes. She set them down on a bench against the far wall, and sat down beside them. "I'm sorry, I've never seen scarring that extensive before."

Riku sank self consciously into the water until his shoulders were completely submerged. He didn't know what to say to Sara.

An awkward silence hung between them, before finally Riku spoke. "It looks a lot worse than it is." He whispered, hoping to reassure the woman.

"It looks painful." Sara replied flatly. "What happened?"

"Lots of things." Riku raised his arm to reveal the underside, where a whip had snaked around his arm when he was thirteen, cutting nearly to the bone. The resulting welt limited the movement of his shoulder, but was otherwise harmless. He explained that to Sara, watching her growing horror with unease. He didn't like the way she looked at him. "It's not so bad." He explained. "They heal quickly and, unless they get infected, it doesn't hurt too much past the infliction."

"I'd rather let a doctor be the judge of that. I'm going to take you to a clinic and have your back checked out. Maybe they can do something about the scaring." The woman answered. "Rest assured, though, that that won't happen to you here, so long as you behave yourself."

Riku didn't reply, so silence again fell between them. Riku was reluctant to get out of the water until he was ordered to do so, but Sara seemed in no hurry to rush him. Finally, to break the silence, Sara said, "Tell me about yourself Riku. What about your family and friends?"

"I have an older brother. Alongside my two paramours, that's my family."

"Paramours?" Sara tasted the unfamiliar word on her tongue. She'd heard it before, in passing, but had no idea what the strange word referred to.

Riku nodded. "A paramour is… like your family. You share everything with them. When you're sick, your paramours take care of you. When you're sad, they cheer you up, and keep you company when you're lonely. I'm sorry. I don't know what the freeborn equivalent is."

"It sounds like paramours are a type of spouse, then. You have two of them?"

"Yes. Axel and Kairi. We've been together since birth."

"Did you always know you would be paramours, then?"

Riku shook his head. The circumstances behind Axel and him becoming paramours had been… forced, to some extent. They hadn't even particularly liked each other at first, and it reflected in the way they still fought like cats and dogs from time to time. Kairi, on the other hand, had been Riku's potential paramour, ever since they were old enough to know what a paramour really was. He told Sara this, but, honestly, Riku didn't like talking about himself. "Can you tell me about my master?" He asked, before Sara could ask him another question. He didn't think she would be upset.

She wasn't. "Who, Lord Hikaru? There's not much to say. He's shrewd, cold and calculating, but he's all bark and no bite. I rather like working for him, and I think you will too. The boys aren't bad either. Cloud's friendly, and Sora's _really friendly_. Roxas grows on you after a while, but he's a good kid, I promise." She paused for a moment, and Riku saw her eyes dart quickly to the doorway before she continued, "Their mother, Lady Chelinka, died a few years ago. The whole family took it hard, of course, but Roxas was especially affected. He hasn't been the same since."

Her voice wistful, Sara added, "Lady Chel had two assistants, a pair of twins she rescued from a labor camp. The boy had an attitude problem, but she was patient. She never yelled or hit him. It just wasn't in her nature to treat a slave cruelly, and eventually Palom saw that as well and lightened up. It's the same with the Director, you know. He wouldn't do anything to disrespect his wife's memory."

Riku refused to allow himself to fully relax, but he did feel comforted by Sara's words. He hoped she was right and that his new master would be, if not kind, than perhaps, fair. Deciding he'd had enough time to soak, Riku sat up and reached for a towel, wrapping it around his body unselfconsciously as he stood up. The air was cool, but it felt pleasant.

"Good idea. The boys will probably be getting back soon, and I'll bet you'd like something to eat." Sara stood up as well and passed the clothes she'd brought for Riku. They were the right length – Cloud was only a little taller than Riku – but too large for the boy's bony, narrow waist. Sara frowned. She could see the outline of his pelvis and she intended to rectify that.

It was as Sara was helping Riku adjust his belt that Sara heard the front door slam open and then shut again, the tell-tale sign that the boys were back. Riku heard as well, and startled slightly, until Sara reassured him. "It's just the boys. They always crash around like that, especially Sora."

"Sara?!" The young woman heard Sora call her name from somewhere in the house, as footsteps came closer to bathroom. Sara suppressed as sigh of annoyance as the door to the bathroom slammed open, hitting the wall with a sharp thunk. Honestly, one day he was going to put a hole in the wall.

As Sara turned to tell Sora that, the boy behind her dropped to his knees, his forehead pressed flat against the cooling tile. Honestly! She needed to have a talk with him. Some respect was fine – expected even – but this was overkill. But, really, she needed to focus on Sora. The short, energetic brunet was smiling at her like an overexcited (and possibly demented) puppy. "Sora, welcome back."

"Hi Sara! Is this the slave Dad bought? Cool! What's his name?" Sora asked, moving closer before Sara intercepted him and kept him away from Riku. More for the poor slave's sake than Sora's.

"Sora, why don't you go say hello to your father. Let him know that you made it back safe and that your brothers didn't dump your body in the nearest swamp. You can talk to Riku later, after he's dressed."Sara explained patiently, watching Sora's eyes go wide. Silly boy wasn't even thinking! "There'll be plenty of time later."

"Oh, right! I'm an idiot. I'll go do that now, before Roxas tells Dad about that thing!" Immediately, and with no more pause, the teenager spun on his heels and left, slamming the bathroom door shut behind him. Sara cocked her head to the side. _That thing._ She made a mental note to ask Cloud later. If nothing else, she could tease Sora about it.

On the floor, Riku had flinched when the door slammed again (it really did seem that the boy hated loud noises and being touched. Sara made another mental note to be extra careful), but now he sat up and stared at the door, a rather dazed expression on his face, which Sara very nearly laughed at.

"Well, that didn't go so bad." The young woman reassured him, gesturing for him to stand back up. "And you don't have to kneel like that for the boys or for the Director. A bow is all the formality required."

"Force of habit." Riku muttered. "I wasn't really thinking. Is he always…?" He trailed off questioningly.

"Loud? Obnoxious? Energetic? You have no idea. The good news is that he's easily distracted. Just point him in a different direction and he'll forget all about his initial quest. Works every time." As Riku put the shirt on, Sara sighed and added, "I hope you don't mind waiting for food. The boys shouldn't take up too much of your time, and then I'll get you something to eat before you meet the Director."

Riku nodded and gathered up his old clothes. "Whatever you think is fine."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later found Riku kneeling on the floor in what seemed to him to be some sort of sitting room. Seated on the couch across from him, the three Hikaru boys were giving him looks of varied interest. The oldest one, Cloud, if Riku remembered right, was a spiky haired, blue eyed blond in his mid twenties, who only seemed mildly interested in Riku. Beside Cloud, a shorter, less eccentric looking version of Cloud sat. The blond hair was slightly less gravity defying, but the frown on the boy's face told Riku that the boy was just here because his siblings were. Sora, the energetic one (and the only one with darker hair, even if it did have sun-kissed blond highlights in it) was perched on the edge of his seat, practically beaming with excitement.

Almost immediately, Sora spoke up, saving Riku from any awkward silences that might have ensued. "Hi! I'm Sora! The grumpy one is Roxas and the old one is Cloud. What's your name?"

Riku could have sworn Sara had told the other boy his name in the bathroom, but he figured Sora must have forgotten it. "My name is Riku, sir." Riku wasn't sure what an appropriate title to use would be, but thought sir seemed respectful enough.

"You don't have to be so formal!" Sora replied, cheerful. "Just call me Sora. I don't mind."

Cloud shot Sora a look that Riku only caught out of the corner of his eyes and didn't have time to decipher. "How old are you, Riku?" Cloud asked, before Sora could speak again.

"A few weeks shy of eighteen, sir."

The questions went on like that. Sora asked Riku about his family, and Riku told them about Sephiroth, but not about Axel or Kairi. With Sara he didn't mind, but these boys had power over him, and sharing something as personal as his paramours with them left him uneasy. As Sara had predicted, the conversation was short, and it wasn't long before Cloud yawned and stood up, claiming exhaustion before he excused himself. Sara took it upon herself to end the conversation, insisting that she take Riku to get something to eat. Roxas, having not said a word, merely shrugged and followed his older brother.

"Can I come with you?" Sora asked Sara as Riku stood and stretched. His back was cramping up again, for some reason. "I want to talk to Riku."

"Sora, sweetie, Riku is a bit overwhelmed right now. Can't it wait until after he's settled in?" Sara explained patiently.

"I won't bother him, I swear!"

Sara paused for a moment, and cast a discreet glance towards Riku, who shrugged lightly. Aside from the mishap in the bathroom, Sora hadn't given Riku any reason to fear him. And besides, it wasn't like Sara could just keep running interception for him. He had to face his young master sometime. Sara pulled Sora off to the side, and the two spoke in low tones for a moment, words Riku couldn't hear. Finally, Sora whooped loudly (which, predictably, caused Riku to jump), so Riku assumed he'd won over Sara.

The kitchen, like the rest of the house, seemed obscenely large in Riku's perception. As Sara pushed him down onto a stool at the breakfast bar, Riku glanced around, trying in vain to recognize more than the very basics of cooking implements. As he took the seat next to Riku, Sora asked, "Is your kitchen at your last home big, Riku?"

"No sir. My home only had one room, and it doubled as the camp infirmary. We do all our cooking over open fires, usually outside, so my brother can have the table and hearth for his work. He's the camp healer." Riku hesitated, realizing he'd said too much and Sora was staring at him openmouthed. Dammit! He always talked too much.

Sara came to his rescue again by setting down a plate of simple meat and cheese sandwiches between Riku and Sora, as well as glasses of water for them both. Sora immediately grabbed for one, devouring it in two large mouthfuls. Riku waited until Sora had grabbed a second sandwich before reaching for one and nibbling on it slowly. He couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten anything with meat in it, if ever. For that matter, Riku could barely remember eating cheese, either, though he was sure he had… years ago…

_His mother, his soft, yielding, sweet mother, knelt beside Sephiroth, who was curled into a tight ball on the floor. Riku sat nearby, with his mother's mortar and pestle, grinding herbs to help abate Sephiroth's fever. The older boy had just turned fourteen and the change, though not of the physical sort, had left its mark on his body. His mother was holding something in her hands. Not medicine, but a treat. She sometimes had treats for her patients. Carefully, she helped Sephiroth sit up and placed one yellow cube against his lips. "Eat this. It will make you feel better." She commanded softly. Sephiroth obeyed, too tired to protest as his mother brushed white hair out of green eyes. She passed a few to Riku. "Have some. It's good for you." She explained, as Riku regarded the yellow, soft food curiously._

Riku was drawn from the memory by the sharp pain in his stomach. He set the half eaten sandwich down on the counter and just barely made it to the sink before his stomach rebelled entirely. Riku wasn't sure if it was the memory –_burnt flesh and Sephiroth's eyes, once so friendly, now so cold and dead_—or the food itself that caused the upset. Sara and Sora watched in horror as Riku violently divested his body of the slight nutrients he had consumed, Sara instantly coming to his side. The hands on his shoulders were warm, welcome, and for a moment Riku thought of his mother again, with her gentle healer's hands.

He liked Sara, because Sara reminded him of his mother. Even now, Sara was making nonsensical, but soothing sounds, as she rubbed his shoulders (ever mindful of the healing wounds on them). When Riku finished and had washed the sour taste from his mouth with water, it was Sara who asked him kindly, "When was the last time you ate something, Riku?"

Riku thought for a moment. Technically, it had been the morning before, when Axel had pushed Riku down onto the floor and forced him to eat a few slices of orange, but Riku had shoved the older boy off and gone down to the beach before Axel could get more than a few pieces in his mouth. He knew that his tendency to go days without eating worried his paramours, but food was scarce and Kairi, the tiny and so fragile looking baby of their circle, needed what little food they had far more than Riku did. The last time Riku ate something substantial, however? Roughly five days. Guardsman Fair had given him nuts and candied fruit, alongside Riku's usual request for medication, and hadn't let Riku go until the boy had eaten at least half of the food.

Riku, not wanting to tell Sara all this, or worry the woman unduly, decided on the technical truth instead. "Yesterday morning."

"And what did you eat?" Sara asked gently.

"Part of an orange." There was no point in denying the truth, Riku decided. He made the mistake of looking up, across the breakfast bar to where Sora was watching him with blue eyes wide, looking a little more than a bit stricken by Riku's confession.

"And before that?" Riku stared at the woman, reluctant to say any more. Sara sighed. "Never mind." She pulled a can out of the cupboard and emptied the contents into a saucepan on the stove. It was a broth of some sort. As it heated on the stove, Riku sat back down in his seat, studiously ignoring Sora's concerned stare.

As though nothing had happened, Sara cleaned up the food and rinsed out the sink. As she leaned over the breakfast bar, she turned to Sora and asked, "So, how was your trip with your brothers, Sora?"

Instantly, the brunet's entire face lit up. "It was great! Cloud took us out to the North Mountain Outlook and we hiked up to the Shrine of the Wind Drake. It was cool! There were all these people praying there. They say if you write your wish on a charm and release the charm into the wind at the shrine, then your wish will come true. It's a prayer to the Wind Drake! I want to go back and try it!"

"You did try it once, don't you remember?" Sara said. She turned her back to them and took the broth off the stove. After pouring it into a mug, Sara handed the cup to Riku with a quiet warning, "Drink slowly." She turned back to Sora. "With your mother, years ago. Don't you remember what you wrote?"

Sora's expression changed to one that was both confused and curious. "Wait, when was this? What did I say? Sara!"

Sara laughed. "You must have been six or seven at the time, right before we got Palom and Porom. You were so excited about the trip. 'My wish is for everyone to be happy.' You said, but you didn't stop there. 'I wish Ingus would get his freedom so he can marry Sara.' You said, and Ingus still thinks it's the sweetest thing you've ever said. 'I also wish for Mommy's new slaves to be nice and play with us lots. I hope we all become like a big family!' Your mom thought it was so sweet that she wrote down the exact same wish."

Sora flushed a rather interesting shade of tomato red at the teasing. Riku hid his smile by taking another careful sip of the broth Sara had given him. It tasted good, and was sitting much better in his stomach than the sandwich had. "Did it come true?" Riku asked hesitantly.

Sara looked at the slave strangely, and Riku hunched over the counter, his hair forming a curtain barrier between him and Sora's equally incomprehensible looks. "It depends on what you mean by true." Sara replied. "Lady Hikaru's slaves were perhaps some of the worst behaved slaves this family has ever owned. I used to just stand back and watch them make trouble, just to see the Lady's eye twitch at the chaos they caused. Both Palom and Porom hated Cloud for some reason, probably because he was a little brat at that age, but they were nice to the twins, so I guess that counts. And Lady Hikaru was more of a live and let live kind of person. It made for a lively household."

"Yeah," Sora interjected, "Now it's just quiet. Sara and Ingus don't even live with us anymore. That's why we decided that it was time Dad got a slave."He cast a friendly smile in Riku's direction. "So I'd make another wish. This time, I'll wish for a lively, happy house. And for Roxas to stop stealing all my clothes."

Riku thought it actually sounded like a rather stupid, wasteful idea to write a wish down on a piece of paper and toss it to the wind, as though any deity could make wishes come true. Yet, strangely enough, Riku kind of wanted to try as well, to see if maybe it would work for him, since it worked for Sora.

* * *

Conversation after that was light and cheerful, carried on mostly by Sara and Sora, until the door to the kitchen opened and all three glanced over. The Director entered, looking bored and a little more than annoyed, but he spared a smile when he saw his son seated at the breakfast bar. Riku, sensing that this man, who carried an air of one in command about him, was his new master, stood up out of respect, bowing his head.

"Dad!" Sora greeted the man, not hesitating to run over and give him a hug, which the man returned, even if it was a bit stiff. "We were talking about the hike we went on today. You should come with us next time."

"Maybe if I have time." The older man replied affectionately. It must have been a well worn excuse, because Sora pulled away with a frown, which his father pretended not to notice. "I need you to leave Sora, so I can talk to the new slave privately."

Sora pouted, his full lower lip pushed out as he did his best kicked puppy impression, but he did as he was told, waving over his shoulder at Riku before he left.

"Sara, the boys left muddy footprints across the entryway. Go clean it up." Director Hikaru ordered. The woman paused long enough to give Riku's shoulder a gentle squeeze of reassurance, before she left the kitchen as well.

Alone, the Director crossed the distance between the two in a few short strides, stopped when he was close enough to grip the boy's chin in one hand, forcing Riku's face upward to look at him. Riku took it as a chance to examine his master, even as he examined Riku. He was an older man, in his mid to late forties, with brownish blond hair streaked with gray that framed his handsome face with gentle waves. A pair of glasses covered pale blue eyes, accented by the lines that betrayed his age. He looked, to Riku, like a man who knew what it was like to lose everything, though Riku couldn't fathom how he got that feeling, let alone if it was true or not.

"I see the labor camps are still producing disgustingly thin waifs and passing them off as slaves. I should protest. I paid for a slave, not a bag of bones." His master's voice was cold, cruel even, as he spoke, and Riku flushed internally with shame, and maybe a bit of anger. It wasn't his fault that there was never enough food! Riku did what he could for his paramours, but it was never enough.

But Riku, long used to having insults hurled at him in such an abusive manor, maintained a perfectly serene countenance.

"No matter," The Director continued on. "I won't suffer a sickly slave, however, and you will eat as you are ordered to do so. I won't have any rumors that I don't treat my slaves well, either. Is that clear?"

Riku could live with that. He lowered his eyelashes respectfully and murmured a polite, "Yes sir."

The Director huffed derisively. "Trained little seducer, aren't you? I've read your file and I don't begrudge you your past, but understand this, little slave, I won't tolerate disobedience or disorder in my household. Try those whorish tricks of yours on my sons and I'll see to it that you end up in a brothel far from here. You are here to learn Physics, in order to pick up my wife's research where she left off. As such, your first duty is to your studies. You've been enrolled at the University of Radiant Garden, starting next week. Your second duty is to my sons as a companion and friend, and your third is to Sara, as her helper. Do you understand?"

Riku nodded carefully. He didn't want to be accused of trying to seduce his master, even though he honestly wasn't. The idea of doing that to any member of the Hikaru household left a bad taste in his mouth.

Satisfied, his master released his chin and raised his other hand, which was holding something in it. Riku now had a chance to see what it was. Thin, circular, with a clasp and electronic lock on it and a ring through which tags could be threaded. A slave's collar. Labor camps didn't bother with collaring their slaves, instead choosing brands and tracking chips in place of a more obvious, and expensive, symbol of ownership. Riku knew, and so must have his master, that a collar would be purely ornamental on a slave who already had a tracking chip embedded in his shoulder. As the lock clasped shut around his neck, however, Riku released that the collar had another purpose. The weight was alien, slight though it was, and the stiffness of the material brushed against his neck, reminding him of its presence.

Though Riku had more freedom now than he had ever had before in his life, the collar around his neck was a physical reminder of the chains that still bound him. Like the scars across his back, this, too, was just one more way to remind Riku that his life, his body, was not his own.

Somehow, in that moment when the collar clasped shut around his neck, Riku felt further from freedom than he ever had before.

* * *

**References**

_Sara Altney (no quote for her)  
_Sara is the Princess of Sasune in Final Fantasy III. Sarah is a recurring name in the Final Fantasy series (always a princess), which was originally why I picked it. It was only in the revision that Sarah's name became Sara, specifically from FFIII.

_The Director (no quote for him)  
_Um, uh, it's a secret. He's from the Final Fantasy VII complication. The reason I don't tell you his name is because that would spoil something. Don't worry, you'll find out who he is later.

"_Their mother, Lady Chelinka, died a few years ago."  
_Chelinka is one of the main characters of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates. I'm a huge fan of the CC games, as they are what I feel the series has lost as it's become more popular (don't even get me started on FFXIII, it won't be pretty). Anyway, Chelinka's a typical big sister type, she has a strong sense of justice and can't stand to see anyone suffering. In this story, she was a physicist studying thermodynamics and heat engines.

_Palom and Porom  
_A pair of magician twins from Final Fantasy IV. Palom, the boy, is a black mage who tends to be very mischievous and troublemaking. Porom, the girl, is a white mage who is always acting to try and reign in her brother's chaos. They're actually rather entertaining characters, in my opinion. In this story, they were Chel's two assistants (you'll find out what happened to them later).

"_Cloud took us out to the North Mountain Outlook and we hiked up to the Shrine of the Wind Drake."  
_I apologize to all the Final Fantasy V fans, but V is one of the few FF games (II and XI being the other two) that I have not played. Anyway, North Mountain is a location in Final Fantasy V where you can find the Wind Drake which is important because it belongs to some other character? I don't really know. I'm waiting for a remake of it to come out (please? It looks fun to play. C'mon Squeenix!)

**Next Chapter**: Aerith and Squall talk about relationships, Sara takes Riku to a clinic, and Cloud has relationship problems. It's the last of the exposition chapters before the plot finally gets rolling.

**Please remember to feed the author. Thanks and bye!**


	3. Causation

Convention season is OVER! At least for me anyway! Yay! I had a great time as a panelist at Anime Express XII (I won the costume contest as female Ciel Phantomhive) this year. Hopefully next year I will be a panelist at Megacon and Anime Express both, and those of you in Florida will have to come out and see me! (I host panels on academic subjects related to anime, such as engineering, gender studies, slash yaoi and yuri, etc). Anyway, this update is late because of the conventions, but now that it's over and the dreaded FINALS will be over next week, I have time to return to this.

If you're curious, check out my posting for April 25 2010 on my livejournal (user name: Lockea_Stone) for bonus content to this story (including the first half of "Waiting Game" and an alternative prologue to this story) as well as a sneak peek at some new fanfiction I'm getting read to post such as "For What It's Worth" which is a Riku/Sora/Kairi.

**This chapter is dedicated to the indomitable, insurmountably awesome, and my completely amazing reviewers: Le Shea, Sakura-chan79, Shibara, and sa_tsl. If not for you, I would keep this story as a kinky little daydream in the back of my head. :)**

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Chapter 2: Causation**

Aerith sighed for what felt like, to Squall, the millionth time that morning. He cast a vaguely worried glance at his partner, who was seated at the table by the window, staring out at the sky when she was supposed to be organizing the student files. "Eight." He said, and she startled out of her dreamy reverie.

"I'm sorry?"

"Eight. That's the eighth time this morning you've sighed like that. There's something bothering you."

It wasn't that Squall particularly cared or anything, but he and Aerith had been working together as mentors for two years now, and as such Squall had gotten good at picking up on Aerith's quiet but ever changing moods.

"I'm sorry, it's just that… I got a letter." She said, finally. "From him, that guy I was seeing a year or so back. He wanted to let me know that he's getting married, and that if I haven't yet, I should probably move on."

"I told you he was no good." Squall said, voice neutral.

"Yeah, I know, but he also said that people shouldn't fall in love between social classes. It makes things complicated."

"Jerk."

Aerith laughed at the Squall's tone; completely deadpan and mildly sarcastic. This was why she loved Squall. He never really seemed to care. "I know, right? But, whatever." She sighed. "It's his loss. I'm not going to be a slave forever, after all."

Squall mentally rolled his eyes and returned his attention to the computer monitor in front of him. He was supposed to be entering the digital tracking information into the database, but the letter/number combinations were beginning to swim in front of his eyes, and he still had at least ten more codes to input. He decided to take a break, standing up and stretching out. His neck was slightly cramped from staring at the computer screen for the last hour and a half.

Aerith must have taken that as her cue to get up, even though Squall knew for a fact that she hadn't actually gotten any real work done that morning. She smiled at him, green eyes mischievous. "Let's ditch work and go get coffee. I could go for coffee right now." She announced.

Squall gestured for her to lead the way, following her wordlessly out of the office. Technically, it was Quistis Trepe's office, as she was the head of a tiny, marginalized department at the University of Radiant Garden known only by the ambiguous name of "Slave Affairs." Her staff consisted of Squall and Aerith, two slaves from wildly different backgrounds who somehow managed not to kill each other in the process of their work. The office was located, unsurprisingly, in the administration building, which happened to be the furthest building from the nearest source of food; the library coffee shop.

So really, when Aerith said she wanted coffee, what she really meant was that she wanted to go on a fifteen-minute trek across campus, which inevitably turned into a forty-five minute break when you factored in the amount of time it took to get their order filled.

It was a good thing Quistis loved them and didn't mind them slacking.

Their plans were foiled, however, when they met the blond haired woman herself down in the lobby of the admin building. She'd gone to the Dean of Student's office that morning to pick up the student tags, leaving her assistants in charge of the office. "Coffee break?" The older woman inquired, her voice amused, as she saw the two come into view.

"That was the plan." Aerith answered cheerfully. "Is there anything you want, Quistis? We could get one of those tea lattes that you like."

Quistis shook her head, and adjusted the small package she was carrying so she could push her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. "Sorry to delay the fun, but I need to talk to you two. We have to go over the plan for the special classes this summer."

Aerith looked interested. Squall's expression remained unaffected, which could mean he was interested, but it could also mean he wasn't. "Do we finally have the roster?" Aerith asked curiously.

"For the most part. We received three enrollments today, which we need to go over." She gestured to a stack of folders on top of her box. "Other than that, we have a modest incoming student size of twenty." They walked back to the office, where Quistis dumped her stuff on the table near the window, where Aerith had been working, and gestured for the two to take a seat.

"That's a good number." Aerith replied mildly, already picking up the first of the folders. It was an academic portfolio only, but it contained the file picture on the slave in question. Enrolling a slave into a university for special training was no easy feat, hence the fact that, despite having a student population of nearly twenty-thousand, the slaves who attended the school numbered less than one hundred.

"Yes, but not nearly as high as I had hoped. Overall, there are six slaves in the group with a history involving labor camps. Seven if you count this girl." She set down a portfolio, already opened to reveal a picture of a healthy, happy looking, blond haired, blue eyed girl.

"Oh, I know her!" Aerith piped in, immediately reaching for the portfolio. "That's Rosa! She's owned by Dr. Kadowaki, though she lives with her freed mother, Dr. Farrell."

She passed the portfolio to Squall, who cast a cursory glance over it before setting it on the table. "That would explain where her experience came from."

Quistis glanced between the two of them, curious. "And that means…?"

Squall shrugged. "Kadowaki Medical Center is one of the few public medical clinics in Radiant Garden. Dr. Kadowaki also helps supply outlying labor camps with healers. Likely, this girl has served time as a labor camp healer."

"I see. Well, I wasn't sure if I should put her in your group, Squall, or leave her in Aerith's." There was a reason Quistis had two assistants who acted as mentors to the incoming students. Most slaves who came to the university had stories similar to Aerith's, who herself had been raised by her mother with the assurance that she'd be receiving higher training. Aerith had lived a sheltered life, assured of her future. However, there was also a small group of slaves with a different sort of story. Those from labor camps had nothing guaranteed to them as children. Squall, with his history in the camps, could emphasize with the struggle those students faced far more than sheltered Aerith could.

"Empathy never hurts." Squall replied. "Keep her in my group. We can change her out later if it doesn't work out."

Another nod from Quistis, before she opened the next profile and passed it to Squall. "These next two registrations are from the recent auctions. They're both from labor camps, and both performed well on the SIAT." She paused to let Aerith read the file. "The first one's Zexion, from Bailey Camp, the internment camp that was switched over to a labor camp. Obviously, I'm going to leave him in your care, Squall. The only worrisome factor is this." Quistis pulled a sheet of printed paper from her binder and passed it to Squall. It was a copy of a page from Zexion's detailed records, with a date on it for two weeks prior. Squall scanned it dispassionately, not letting his distaste show. It was a disciplinary report; the government required them to be written any time a slave was formally punished. This one was no different from any other Squall had read—including his own—so at first he missed what it was Quistis wanted him to find.

"Check under the justification subheading, and tell me if that doesn't sound strange to you." Quistis prompted, and Squall did as he was told, scanning the information quickly.

"It does." He agreed hesitantly, and passed the paper to Aerith, who did the same.

Aerith's expression became confused. "I don't understand." She passed the report to Quistis, and the file to Squall. Squall scanned Zexion's profile, suitably impressed by the gray-haired youth's academic achievement. "It looks routine to me."

"Too many." Squall answered. "If it were routine, for the 'willful disobedience' listed there, the punishment would have been six to twelve lashes. The report lists that forty lashes were dealt."

"So what does that mean?" The brunet woman asked.

Quistis shrugged. "Could be nothing. Could be everything. Either our brilliant new student is a troublemaker, or the report isn't telling the complete facts. And, the recentness and severity of the… discipline… has me concerned."

"I'll keep an eye on it." Squall promised, and that was the end of that conversation.

The next file Quistis passed to Squall was just as impressive as Zexion's had been, academically speaking. "This is Riku, from Destiny Camp." Quistis informed them.

Squall glanced over the file, before passing it on to Aerith. "Looks fine to me."

"No it doesn't." Aerith interjected, her nose curled up in disgust. "He has sexual services listed under his special training subhead. What is wrong with these people?"

Squall resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He'd noticed that when he looked over the file, but hadn't thought anything of it. In the labor camps, a slave who traded sex for food or clothing was not all that uncommon, and since Riku had Lunasis, Squall could easily guess what Riku had been trading for. "It doesn't mean anything."

"He's seventeen, for crying out loud! He's just a kid and he's far too smart to be doing that sort of thing. Honestly, what if he turns out to be a troublemaker or something?"

If Squall had been the vindictive, bitter sort, he might have wished Aerith had experience in a labor camp so she would realize what an absurd statement it was that she had just made. As it was, he merely counted to five in his head and said, "The age of majority for a labor slave is fourteen. At that time, they are treated as adults under the Helotian Law. However, even then it's not unusual to find younger slaves trading sexual favors for basic necessities. You do what you have to in order to get by, and it doesn't reflect on your character."

"I would never degrade myself like that." It wasn't even that Aerith was being particularly snobby or anything, it was just that she honestly didn't understand what Squall was trying to say.

Squall shot Quistis a look which clearly said, 'Stop me before I do something to her that I'll regret.'

"All right, that's enough you two. If Squall says it's nothing to worry about, then we won't worry about it." Quistis hated playing the peacekeeper, but she was used to the role. "I just wanted to get your thoughts and opinions on the newest enrollments. Now, let's talk about the plan for the special class."

Even as she spoke, however, Squall's cell phone rang. He carried one on him because his master, Laguna Loire, insisted on all his slaves having one, but Squall never used his. He glanced at Quistis for permission to answer it, and flipped it open when Quistis nodded. "Squall, it's Laguna. I need you to take the kid today."

For this, Squall really did roll his eyes. "Master, the university is not a daycare center. I doubt Ms. Trepe will want Relm getting underfoot." Even though a quick glance over at the woman proved Squall otherwise. Quistis loved Relm, even though the twelve-year-old runt of Laguna's slaves was loud, obnoxious, and prone to pranks. Squall chalked it up to Quistis having a midlife crisis. At twenty-seven, but still.

"Ask her for me, would you? I am up to my ears with requests for security details today, and since you're still on probation for that last incident, I can't send you out into the field. If it comes down to it, I will pull you from that office for this."

Great. So Squall had a choice between babysitting the runt at the office or returning to his master's home to babysit the runt. He covered the mouthpiece to ask Quistis, "Is it all right if Relm comes here for the afternoon? There's no one else who can watch her."

"She's more than welcome."

Squall uncovered the mouthpiece. "Ms. Trepe says she can come, master." It was hard to keep the sarcasm out of his tone, but he managed it. Leave it to his master to turn him from a glorified babysitter for the rich into a real babysitter for a girl who was like a sister to him.

"Good. She'll be there in fifteen." With that, Laguna hung up.

Fifteen minutes later found a little girl of no more than twelve years of age seated on the couch in Quistis's office, humming a cheerful ditty as she kicked her legs back and forth. Relm, who was the daughter of one of Laguna's other slaves, Shadow, was treated more like a daughter than a slave by their rather overindulgent master. As such, she had the personality of a free girl, and a nose for getting in and out of trouble. Not even sneaking into the room Squall shared with his paramour had been met with more than a chuckle and a hair ruffle from Laguna. It was enough to make Squall want to tear his hair out with frustration, right after he tore up the picture she'd painted of Zell, Squall's paramour, asleep in his arms.

Oblivious to Squall's frustration with the little girl, Quistis smiled at her and said, "Good morning Relm. How are you today?"

"Good, Ms. Trepe. Thank you for letting me come here again. Can I paint your portrait?" It was her usual request, because Relm was, first and foremost, an artist. And she was a talented one at that. Her pictures had a quality to them, a sort of lifelike realism that was both a glamour and an exposure of that which she painted.

"You've already painted my portrait." Quistis indulged. "Why don't you paint Aerith's portrait instead. I'm sure she'd like one of your pictures."

Aerith glanced up from where she was organizing student files at the desk by the window when Quistis said her name. "Ooh! One of Relm's famous pictures! Go ahead."

Relm dug around in the pack she'd brought with her and pulled out a sketchpad and charcoal. "Okay. Now hold still."

As the girl sketched, Quistis turned her attention back to Squall. "Every year there's always a strong rivalry between the labor slaves and the private slaves. I was thinking I should do something to address it this year, but I couldn't decide what. Do you think talking to them about it would work?"

"And what, per se, would you talk about?" Squall didn't even bother looking up, his voice dry as he resumed entering tracking numbers into the computer. "Some clichéd speech about how we need to respect each other's individual experiences?"

"Well, it couldn't hurt. I mean, we don't have to go into detail or anything." Aerith interjected.

"You can't talk about respecting the labor slaves unless you admit that they've been severely abused." Squall bit back, his eyes narrowed in a glare. These kind of conversations annoyed him, because they revealed the cluelessness that plagued even the private slaves.

Quistis hummed in thought. "I don't think we need to go that far. I mean, there's no way to tell if the experience is universal, and generalizations are what we're trying to avoid."

"Yeah, but denying that slaves are abused in camps is like sticking your fingers in your ears and saying 'Nah nah, I can't hear you therefore you must not be speaking.'" Squall informed her, as he stood up to stretch his legs.

"You know, I'm actually not sure this is such an appropriate topic of conversation when we have a kid in the room." Aerith mused with a meaningful glance at Relm, who was filling in the shape of Aerith's eyes with her pencil.

Relm didn't even blink. "Oh, don't worry about me. I've seen Squall naked, so I know what abuse is."

It was funny, in its own absurd way, the sheer wrongness that was Relm's statement. Squall's face turned an interesting shade of tomato red as he tried to decide on an appropriate response. Even so, Quistis's lips quirked upward in a wry smile. "My my, Squall, what _have_ you been doing?"

"Having my privacy invaded by a conniving little sneak, that's what." Squall bit out with a glare in Relm's direction. It was a look that would have withered grown men with its coldness, but Relm merely blinked innocently at him. Squall growled, his fragile sense of self control on the verge of breaking (and he really didn't want to face Laguna to tell him that he'd murdered Relm), so he stalked out without another word.

Left alone, the three females shared a look which was partly amused, and maybe a bit worried as well. "Are you sure you should have riled him up like that Relm?" Aerith asked hesitantly.

Relm shrugged. "Someone had to. Everyone's been walking on eggshells since he got grounded last week. I mean, we all sympathize with Squall, but we don't want to go against the master, even if we think he's in the wrong." She sighed and paused to pull out a marker to begin coloring in Aerith's hair. "I did mean what I said earlier, though. I may be twelve, but I'm not as oblivious as everyone thinks I am. Half the time, not even Squall's paramour can touch him. I know it's because he's ashamed. So he lashes out when he's propositioned for sex. But people don't think about these things from the slave's point of view. All they see is a rebellious slave who needs to be tamed."

Relm finished the picture and turned it to show Aerith. The uncanny resemblance between picture and person was astonishing. Relm had even captured the way Aerith's wispy hair brushed against her cheeks when she smiled.

"But I'm good at seeing what can't be seen."

* * *

The television blared in the clinic waiting room as a newscaster spoke into the screen.

"_Tensions continue to mount between the Kingdom of Dalmasca and the forces of Radiant Garden as skirmishes continue to break out along the border at Figaro providence, which is currently under Radiant Garden's control. The fighting broke out last week when Dalmascan forces falsely accused Radiant Garden of keeping captured soldiers as slaves, and a small contingent raided Sandstorms Internment Camp. Roughly fifty slaves are among the missing and thus far casualties have been –"_

Dr. Farrell picked up the remote from where it rested on the reception desk and changed the channel, even as the girl behind the desk protested. "Hey! I was watching that!"

"No you weren't." Dr. Farrell said, ignoring the kicked puppy look the girl was giving her. "You are supposed to be memorizing herbal properties, not watching the news."

"But I've memorized everything already! Besides, that was interesting. Does this mean Radiant Garden will go to war?"

The older woman shook her head, and patted the girl's long blond hair affectionately. "Oh Rosa, I certainly hope not! It will be bad enough as it is, with the skirmishes interrupting the flow of goods, but a full blown war could mean a damaging loss of life." She set the remote down and picked up a manila folder. "If you're done studying, you might as well help me with a patient." She passed the folder to Rosa, who immediately glanced at the designation on it. "Check his vitals and get him set up in one of the rooms. I will be there momentarily."

Rosa nodded and picked up the folder; when Dr. Farrell left she glanced at the designation again and called out to the waiting room, "D532-04E, Riku."

There was a moment of déjà vu when Rosa saw the young man who rose when his name was called. Pale hair fell into bright eyes, across a face that was thin but porcelain, an unnatural sort of beauty. Her eyes fell immediately to his wrists, where dark purple bruises snaked up his arms.

"_Don't worry." He rushed to reassure her, even as his hand covered the bruise on his forearm. "It looks worse than it is. The Lunasis means even the lightest touch can leave a bruise."_

"_But you're covered in them!" She had insisted, her hands shaking as she reached up to brush against the unbroken cheekbone, where a pale green bruise trailed along his jawline, circling around his neck beneath his collar._

"_It's nothing." He reiterated, but this time the words sounded distant, defeated. "I've endured worse."_

Rosa shook herself from the memory, and offered the patient, who was a young slave about the same age as her, a friendly smile. "Hello Riku. I'm Rosa. I'll be assisting Dr. Farrell in your treatment today." She led him to a private treatment room, quietly observing his movements. Another young woman was with him, probably his handler. She rested one hand reassuringly on the boy's shoulder. "Have you ever been to a clinic before, Riku?" Rosa asked. The question wasn't part of the normal routine of questions, but from the way the boy kept casting his gaze about discretely, and from his designation number (she could tell just from that that he was from a labor camp), Rosa figured there was a fair chance the answer would be no.

"No ma'am, I haven't." Quiet, polite, a demure sort of response which one would expect out of a well behaved slave. Rosa felt uneasy.

"Call me Rosa. After all, I'm a slave, same as you." She pointed to her collar, where her identification tags hung from the front ring. She gestured for him to take a seat on the examination table and grabbed the stethoscope from the counter on the far side of the wall. "Your designation says you're being educated. What year are you?"

"First year. I haven't started yet. I'm supposed to next week."

The blond haired girl beamed at him. "Me too! That means we'll be in the same class together. University of Radiant Garden, right? I'm studying medicine, what are you studying?"

"I'm supposed to be studying experimental physics."

Rosa regarded him with an impressed look. "You must have done phenomenal on the SIAT to get a bid like that! Wow, you must be excited."

"I guess." Riku shrugged, and cast a quick glance over at his handler. The woman was sitting in a chair in the corner, reading quietly from a book. Riku added, "I'd rather study something like writing or political science instead."

"Yeah, but there's not a whole lot a slave trained in political science can do. I mean, at least if you know physics than you can work as a lab technician. And if you make a breakthrough, then you're pretty much guaranteed freedom!" Rosa informed him as she jotted down some quick notes on his chart.

The door opened and in walked an older woman in her late thirties, her blond hair tied up in a severe bun, but a gentle look about her. Dr. Farrell had the kind of appearance that suited a healer well, that of someone people instinctively trusted. "Almost done, Rosa?"

"I'm done." Rosa informed her, passing the doctor the chart. "Can I stay for the examination please?"

Dr. Farrell took the chart and flipped through the notes Rosa had made. "No. I'm about to send his handler out anyway. Riku and I need to discuss a few issues with his medical records in private." The woman cast a significant look at Sara, who looked up from her book long enough to nod in understanding.

"I have a few questions I want to ask." Sara informed the doctor. "But I can wait until after you're finished." She turned to Riku with another reassuring smile, "If you need me for anything, don't hesitate to get me." With that, she followed the blond slave out of the room.

"She seems nice." Dr. Farrell began conversationally as she rummaged through a cabinet on the far side of the room. "It must be a nice change, going from the camps to living in a private household."

Riku hesitated, unsure of the possibility of the question having an ulterior motive. "I suppose so." He paused, hesitated again, and added, "Ma'am."

"You can speak frankly with me, Riku. I won't judge, and nothing you say will leave this room without your permission." When Dr. Farrell turned around, she had a small sheaf of papers and a pen. "I need you to tell me the absolute truth, without lies or omissions, understand."

"Yes, ma'am." Even so, the hairs on the back of Riku's neck stood on end as he regarded the woman with a certain amount of trepidation.

The first questions were simple enough. Dr. Farrell asked him for his age and birth date and a few questions about his parents. Did either of his parents have Lunasis? Since it was a genetic condition, Lunasis tended to be worse in those whose family also had the disease. Riku answered the questions honestly, and was almost completely relaxed when she told him to take off his shirt.

Riku did so without hesitation, and sat still as he felt Dr. Farrell's clinical eyes taking in the long white stripes of scars that snaked across his back and chest. Against his pale skin, the scars were difficult to see, but the open wound, too cleanly cut to have been caused by a whip, was apparent even against his skin.

Dr. Farrell didn't comment on the scarring, taking notes quietly on her clipboard. Finally, she said, "The scars appear to be primarily superficial. None of them are terribly limiting. I can recommend surgery to correct them, but your master will have to agree to pay for it."

Riku nodded and felt his heart sank. He hadn't realized how much he'd been hoping to get the full range of motion in his arm back. He didn't realize that his emotions were showing until Dr. Farrell said, "Don't look so disappointed Riku. I'll give you a topical salve you can use to loosen and minimize the scarring. That, alongside some simple stretches, should help with any pain and tightness they may cause you."

He didn't answer, instead choosing to count the tiles on the floor. Dr. Farrell sighed, made another note on her clipboard, and asked. "How did you get the wound on your back?"

It was tempting to lie. Oh, so very tempting. Riku hesitated for a moment, opened his mouth, and said, "I fell off the roof of our house."

Dr. Farrell raised one eyebrow. "Onto a sharp object with a clean edge? Cuts like that don't come from falling off of buildings, Riku." She said disapprovingly.

Riku, to his credit, didn't even blush with embarrassment. Without inflection in his voice, he said, "I'd rather not talk about it, but it was a knife."

"I see. Well, you're lucky the wound didn't bleed out. Your Lunasis has gotten quite severe in the last few months, as I'm sure you've guessed based on the severity of those bruises on your wrist. When was the last time you were treated?"

"I don't remember." Riku answered honestly. "Three or four months ago. I was doing half treatments."

"Half treatments are only good when you're perfectly healthy and not likely to get an illness or an infection." Dr. Farrell's frown, ever present on her pretty face, still managed to contain some sympathy for the pale haired teenager. "I'll prescribe full treatments, which you'll need to take every day without fail, understand?" Riku nodded. "Now, you'll need to take the medicine with food. Have you been having any difficulty eating?"

"I've been throwing up." Riku answered honestly. "So far, I've only managed to keep down bread, salad, and some fruit."

"Your body is starved. It will take some time before you're able to eat rich foods. For the time being, it's best to eat small amounts every few hours or so. I'll give your handler a list of foods you can have. In a few weeks, depending on how much weight you've gained, you may be able to add in some foods, start eating richer, not so easily digested ones."

Riku thought for a moment, considered her words, and sighed. "My body's all screwed up. It's like I'm falling apart." He raised his arm to look at the bruises there. There were a few other bruises, across his pelvis and around his upper arms. But the handcuffs had left especially deep ones, painful and tender.

"It's just a bit wounded." Dr. Farrell assured him, her voice soft. "Give yourself some time to heal." She covered one of his hands with her own. "You're in a position to do so, now. If you're looking for somewhere to begin, then start here."

* * *

Cloud found himself staring up at the ceiling. The walls, white and stark and bare of the tiny little room with its tiny bed meant only for one person, always felt so oppressive and almost… gray… even with the window open to let in sunlight and the warm afternoon air of summer. He wondered, vaguely and in thoughts that were not words, what it would be like to live in a room like this, where even his thoughts felt cramped and constrained.

"What are you thinking about?"

Blue eyes, the color of the summer sky regarded Cloud with a sort of restrained curiosity; the face in which they were set interrupted Cloud's view of the ceiling. The pale tan of a man who grew up outdoors, but hadn't been outside in a very long time, two curving red scars trailing from the corners of his eyes down to mid cheek. Cloud had asked, once, where the scars came from, but the man had brushed it off with practiced ease, his answer causing more questions. The tie he'd used to bind his hair had fallen off sometime in the activities of the last hour, and blood colored hair spilled around his angular face and down his shoulders to mid back. The silver of a slave's collar glinted around his neck.

"Nothing." Cloud responded, stroking the slave's cheek with one hand as he brushed red hair out of his face. "What is a paramour?"

The slave merely stared at him for a few minutes, before he sighed and laid down across Cloud's chest, their bodies pressed together in a warm embrace. For a moment, Cloud regretted his skin for keeping them apart, and buried his fingers in crimson locks, to pull them closer still. "A partner, who is a slave, that you have sex with." The slave explained casually, not bothering to look at Cloud.

Cloud returned his gaze to the ceiling. "Are you my paramour, then?"

The slave snorted. "Hades would freeze over first." He stated casually. "Paramours are people you treasure, with whom sex is a blessing, a release. Everything else is meaningless."

"Is this meaningless then?"

The slave nodded.

Cloud should have been angry. If he had been anybody else, Cloud might have been furious. To be told that this person, for whom Cloud held such strong emotions, thought little of their encounters, and regarded them as insignificant, meaningless. It hurt, just a little, but Cloud thought, maybe, he could understand it.

"Why do you ask?" The slave continued, as though he hadn't said anything out of the ordinary.

"No reason." Cloud mused. The ceiling seemed so bleak. Why couldn't the light from the window make this room any brighter? Why did it seem like all the light in the world couldn't make this room bright, cheerful, lively? In many ways, the room reflected the personality of the slave who occupied it. "You were born in a labor camp, weren't you?"A nod and a contented sigh from the slave, who was curling up beside Cloud as though intending to go to sleep. "Which one?"

"Destiny." The slave muttered, one lazy eye blinking open to regard Cloud, another question already at his lips. Cloud intercepted him.

"That's the same camp our new slave's from."

The redhead opened both eyes now, and sat up as all thoughts of sleep left him. "Who?" Emotion colored his tone, nearly imperceptible, and Cloud wondered why.

"His name's Riku. Do you know him?"

The slave sighed, rolling out of Cloud's arms and off the bed. Clothing had been hastily strewn across the narrow floor, which he now collected as he began to redress. "Yeah, but he was just a kid when I was sold. He's the same age as my brother, so I used to see him fairly frequently." He paused, hesitated, asked. "Cloud… can I see him?"

"Why?" Cloud didn't see any reason to say no, but he was curious about his interest in Riku. Of course, it also depended on whether Riku wanted to meet him as well.

The redhead shrugged. "No reason. To say hello, I guess. To congratulate him on making it out of the camps." He fished his hair tie off the floor and pulled waist length hair back into a simple, messy ponytail. His clothing, haphazard and unkempt, paired with the grin that he flashed Cloud, a cocky, careless smile, had the odd effect of making the redhead seem both playful and dangerous. "Do that for me, would you? Tell Riku that Reno said hello."

* * *

And now you know where that one random line in the last version of this story came from. XD

_Technically, it was Quistis Trepe's office, as she was the head of a tiny, marginalized department at the University of Radiant Garden known only by the ambiguous name of "Slave Affairs."_

Quistis is one of the main characters in Final Fantasy VIII. She grew up alongside Squall in the orphanage but later went on to become one of the youngest SeeDs in history as well as Squall's teacher at Balamb Garden. In this story, her past is a carefully guarded secret, but she genuinely cares about what she does at the school.

_Kadowaki Medical Center is one of the few public medical clinics in Radiant Garden._

Dr. Kadowaki is a minor character in Final Fantasy VIII. She's a grandmotherly sort, in my opinion. She's the doctor for Balamb Garden. In this story, she owns and operates a clinic which offers medical services to slaves as well as supplies healers to labor camps. Many of her doctors are former slaves themselves, which makes them sympathetic to the plight of their patients.

_Even as she spoke, however, Squall's cell phone rang. He carried one on him because his master, Laguna Loire, insisted on all his slaves having one, but Squall never used his. _

Another Final Fantasy VIII character. Oh boy. Laguna's a pretty major character in the games, as he contrasts nicely with Squall. His personality is easy-going and somewhat flamboyant. He's also one of the funnest (and easiest) characters to accidentally spoil. So if you know Laguna and Squall's little secret in the game, you can take a wild guess where those two are going to end up by the end of the story (if you've already guessed, here's another secret for you: Laguna knows but Squall doesn't). In this story, Laguna owns a bodyguard business which uses specially trained slaves.

_Quistis loved Relm, even though the twelve-year-old runt of Laguna's slaves was loud, obnoxious, and prone to pranks._

Relm Arrowny is the genki girl stereotype in Final Fantasy VI (a la Yuffie, Selphie, Eiko, Rikku, etc in other games). She's the daughter of another character, Shadow, and the adopted granddaughter of Stragos. In the game, she's a painter who has the ability to bring her artwork to life (for good or for bad). Because of her perceptive abilities, Relm tends to act older than she really is (she's twelve in the game). In this story, Relm's perception allows her to paint what others can't see, bringing them to life. She becomes more important later on in the story, for now she exists to annoy the hell out of Squall, because she's a typical little sister.

_"Tensions continue to mount between the Kingdom of Dalmasca and the forces of Radiant Garden as skirmishes continue to break out along the border at Figaro providence, which is currently under Radiant Garden's control. "_

Dalmasca is the name of the kingdom where most of the main characters in Final Fantasy XII are from. Figaro is the name of Edgar's kingdom in Final Fantasy VI. Both have a desert-like climate to them.

_Dr. Farrell picked up the remote from where it rested on the reception desk and changed the channel, even as the girl behind the desk protested._

Might as well kill two birds with one stone. Joanna Farrell and her daughter Rosa Farrell are characters in Final Fantasy IV. Rosa is a main character, and Joanna is a minor character. Rosa tends to act strongly on what she believes in, but she's also a hopeless romantic and prone to naivete. She's actually one of my least favorite FF girls because she tends to be very weak willed when it comes to standing up to the main character, Cecil (grr... weak willed women annoy me). In this story, Rosa is ruled by her regrets towards a slave with Lunasis whom she wasn't able to save (more on that in future chapters), and it colors her interactions with her teammates. She is also good friends with Rydia, who appears in the next chapter.

_He fished his hair tie off the floor and pulled waist length hair back into a simple, messy ponytail. His clothing, haphazard and unkempt, paired with the grin that he flashed Cloud, a cocky, careless smile, had the odd effect of making the redhead seem both playful and dangerous._

Reno is a Turk from Final Fantasy VII. Which means he's a bad guy. Or is he? Reno's personality is caustic and sarcastic, but also prone to mischievousness. He's kind of a chaotic evil sort, which means he will help you or hurt you depending on which one serves his purposes better. In this story, Reno is Axel's older brother who was sold before Axel turned fourteen. He's also a man of many faces, so the face he shows to Cloud is not the face he shows to others. He doesn't always say what he means, and he likes to play the devil's advocate. He's actually one of my favorite characters to write.

**Next Chapter**: More exposition happens as Cloud explains the politics of Radiant Garden, Sora acts like a complete flake (but he's cute, so we forgive him), and Riku has to tackle another hurdle in his new life; school. In other words, you can all stop drumming your fingers, the plot has arrived!

**Reviews are made of great love and epic amounts of cake.**


	4. Differences

I. Hate. This. Chapter. Just about the only things I like about it is that Zexion comes in, Riku has a deliciously angsty flashback (that took for-freaking-ever to write), and I invented a new word. Yep, persent is not a misspelling. It's like percent, except in Senary. If you're interested in converting from X persent into Y percent, use this very simple formula: X*100/36 = Y. The persent, written in numerical value, would be 4 (nobles), 21 (slaves), and 31 (commoners). If you add it up in Senary, it equals 100 (thirty-six). I know, you wish I wasn't geek, don't you? Don't worry, it's not important to the main plot. It's just fun for me.

**To the amazing Le Shea for distracting me via AIM when I was thiiiiiiiiiiiisssssss close to finishing the chapter. To Sakura_chan79 for once again being freakishly accurate in her analysis of my characterizations. To batcat4eternity, may she have the best of luck with her own polyfidelity fic. To Shibara for her blunt praise, because I feel like I'll always get the naked truth from her (yay!). **

* * *

**Chapter Three: Differences**

Riku dreamed.

_He was fourteen again, staring up at the insurmountable reality that was to be his life. The fire flickered, his back burned from the constant sting of a whip, the guard wielding it had a pretty word for Riku's punishment. No, not pretty. A clean word. _Defiance_. It said nothing at all about the reality of the situation. Fifteen lashes. For what? Riku wasn't sure. For being scared. For panicking. For biting when he shouldn't have. Not defiance. There was a difference. Or, at least, Riku had once thought so. But as he screamed he couldn't be sure. The hazy pain made it blur. There wasn't a difference between being scared and being defiant._

_When the last lash fell on Riku's back, the teenager nearly sobbed in relief, jerking in the rope that bound his hands above his head. Pretty words fell from his lips. No, not pretty. Desperate words. A plea. The guard pressed against Riku's back, one hand trailing down the boy's waist to his groin, touching, stroking, _invading_. The other hand gripped his jaw, thick fingers invading his mouth, the taste of them filling his nostrils, a slimy texture against his tongue as Riku fought not to gag. Whispered words exchanged, pressure like sparks of fire along the bruising of Riku's back._

"_Are you going to defy me again?" The guard whispered, gripping Riku's manhood gently, but with the threat of excruciating pain lingering underneath._

_Riku whimpered, his mind stumbling to grasp for words through the hazy veil. Dazed. Confused. Stop! Stop… don't stop. He wanted this, needed this. But there was no meaning, only the sensation of his body. No, not his body. The body in which his mind lived. It wasn't his body._

_That had been the hardest lesson of all to learn._

He woke covered in a cold sweat from his nightmare, bolting upright as he choked on his own desperate gasps. He could feel, vividly, the burn of ropes around his wrist and the sting of the lash. Smell the thick, cloying aroma of desperate arousal. Riku gagged, and barely had time to stumble to the bathroom before he threw up the undigested remains of the previous night's dinner. There hadn't been much. Five days after visiting the clinic and Riku still wasn't holding down food like he was supposed to.

It was a horrifying thought, actually, if Riku dwelled on it. _My body's breaking down._ It filled him with a sort of panic. What if Guardsman Fair had been right and Riku really had destroyed his body with those stupidly selfless acts? What if he never recovered from the starvation, from the Lunasis?

But he couldn't spend time thinking about that. He had to focus on the here and now. There was one more day left before the classes at the university would begin, and the past week had been spent getting Riku prepared for them. The teen returned to his room and pulled out the new clothes Sara had bought him. There was a mix of casual denim pants and button down shirts, as well as slacks and more dressy clothing, but all of it was of a much higher quality than the second hand rags that were the norm in labor camps. Who needed presentable slaves just to work the fields? But private slaves were a different sort of domain. Riku selected long denim pants and a pale blue short sleeved shirt. It would reveal the faded bruising along his arms, as well as a few scars, but Riku didn't care. He didn't bother with shoes, hating the way they made his feet feel confined. He was so used to going barefoot that it didn't matter one way or another.

The Hikaru manor was so large that Riku still had a tendency to get lost in it, but after a few days, he now knew the path from the servant's quarters to the kitchen, even if that was about the only path he had memorized. Sara was already there, busy at work making breakfast for seven people. Ingus and Cloud were there as well. Ingus was helping Sara cook while Cloud sat at the breakfast bar talking with them. From what Sara had told Riku, Cloud was twenty-three, only three years younger than Sara and Ingus. Before Ingus had earned his freedom and he and Sara had gotten married, they'd lived in the servant's quarters and had practically grown up alongside Cloud.

Thus, within a few days, it had ceased to be unusual for Riku to see Cloud in the kitchen when he got up in the morning, and he didn't hesitate to take a seat next to him at the breakfast bar, listening to their conversation.

"The uprising at the border means the supply routes between Rabanastre and Capital City have been cut off." Ingus was explaining. "Already, there's been mass panic about oil shortages."

"But it doesn't affect us." Cloud responded.

Sara laughed derisively. "That's a rather high stance to take, isn't it Cloud? There are commoners calling for the abolition of the oligarchy, claiming that the Court of Lords allowed Dalmasca to invade Sandstorms by not heeding Princess Ashelia's demands that her people be returned, despite popular Radiant Garden opinion that these demands should be met."

"It's not like the commoners can do anything about it though, is it?"

Ignus shook his head. "I wouldn't underestimate them. Nobles only make up four persent of the total population in Radiant Garden. Slaves make up thirteen persent and commoners make up the remaining nineteen. Imagine if all those commoners and slaves were to rise up at the same time? It wouldn't matter that the nobles control all the resources, the commoners would have sheer numbers on their side."

"'It is the first sign of an unhealthy government which does not fear its own people.'" Riku quoted. He tried to remember where the words had come from. It sounded like something Genesis had said, once. It sounded like something the former soldier would say.

The timer on the stove beeped. Sara pulled out a large pan of crumb cake topped with cinnamon streusel and began to cut it into smaller, edible portions. Riku didn't recognize the food, but the aroma of it – rich, yet not quite sweet – was pleasant. Sara cut a small piece off and put it on a separate plate, handing it to Riku.

"Those sound like dangerous words." Cloud said, in response to Riku's quote.

"But true nonetheless." Ingus defended.

Cloud opened his mouth to respond, but Sara interrupted him. "Cloud, why don't you go get Sora and Roxas out of bed? I'm about to take breakfast into the dining room. Take Riku with you. He should probably figure out where your rooms are sooner or later." The blond haired woman suggested, already beginning to load the food onto trays.

The blond haired noble merely shrugged and jumped down from his stool, followed closely by Riku. Of the three Hikaru siblings, Cloud was the one Riku knew best, though he'd spent some time with Sora as well. The oldest and the youngest were polar opposites in personality. Cloud had a disinterested air to him, concerned only with that which directly impacted him, while Sora was interested in even the smallest, most insignificant details of everyday life. Sora exhausted Riku, for he never stopped talking or asking questions. Riku had been told, several times in fact, that he talked too much. But compared to Sora, Riku was practically mute.

Cloud took him to Sora's room first. It was on the second floor, in the back of the house, and it made Riku's modest sized room look like a closet by comparison. Sora decorated cheerfully, with blues and reds and golden yellows in a rich mosaic of color and life. Riku found himself staring at the artwork on the walls, beautifully wrought steel keys, roughly a meter in length, and decorated in a variety of manners, each one individually unique. Cloud caught Riku looking at them. "They're keyblades." He explained. "From the legend about the birth of Radiant Garden. They unlock people's hearts, revealing the light within, and from that light a radiant garden was formed."

Riku had heard the story before. There were three who wielded the blades, chosen by destiny and blessed with the power to see into the hearts of others. Their blades were beacons of light in the darkness. He turned his attention away from the blades.

For all that Sora's room was large, so too was his bed. In fact, it almost seemed to swallow up the brunet teenager asleep underneath a red and dark indigo coverlet. Cloud shook Sora awake, but the boy merely grumbled and rolled over. "Fif m'r' minu'es 'oud."

Cloud grinned at Riku conspiratorially and placed one finger to his lips. He waited until Sora had settled down again, before he attacked, digging his fingers into Sora's side and tickling the boy awake. Sora gasped, laughing as he struggled to get away from the onslaught. Riku watched, his face expressionless, as the two brothers roughhoused. After a few minutes and a cry of "Mercy!" from Sora, Cloud finally let up.

"Are you going to wake up now?" Cloud asked.

"No!" Came the muffled reply as the younger teenager rolled over.

Cloud rolled his eyes and stood up. He turned to Riku and said, "Get Sora up for me, will you? I'm going to go wake up Roxas who isn't as lazy as _someone_ I know."

Sora made a rude gesture with one of his hands, already pulling a pillow over his mussed brown locks. Cloud shrugged and left.

Riku stared at the bed for a few minutes, unsure of what to do. He didn't want to make Sora angry at him, but Cloud had told him to get Sora up and he didn't want to disobey Cloud. He needn't have worried however, because not long after Cloud left, the brunet rolled over and sat up, staring at Riku with his large, and too perceptive blue eyes. "'Morning Riku!" Sora chirped, flashing him a winning smile.

"Good morning Master Sora." Riku replied hesitantly.

Sora rolled his eyes. "Just Sora, Riku. I really hate when you call me master. You're older than me."

This was about the third or fourth time Sora had asked Riku to call him by his first name. Riku wondered if Sora would ever finally lose his patience and hit him for it. He hoped not, but Riku couldn't bring himself to call Sora by his real name. Not yet anyway. Noticing this, Sora sighed and patted the covers beside him. "At least come sit with me, won't you?"

Hesitantly, Riku crawled up on the bed, settling awkwardly against the headboard, out of Sora's immediate reach. "Hey, Riku, you said the other day that you have a brother, didn't you? What's he like?"

"What do you mean, master." Demure, soft, almost a whisper. Riku refused to meet Sora's eyes.

"Like Cloud acts all cold and distant in front of his friends, but to Roxas and I, and you of course, he's really just a big fluffy chocobo. He always has time to spend with Roxas and I, and takes us out to fun places. Is your brother like that?"

Riku thought about Sephiroth. The man was almost seven years older than him, and had been Riku's primarily caretaker from the time their parents had died when Riku was nine to the time that Riku came of age at fourteen. Sephiroth spoke very little, and always in a carefully monotonous tone that betrayed none of his emotions. He'd never outwardly joked with Riku, though he had a sense of humor that tended to be rather dry. And while Sephiroth had certainly never been abusive or cruel to Riku, neither had he ever shown him true kindness. Riku hadn't thought much of it, since that was how many other slaves were treated by family members – Axel's brother had been the sarcastic and verbally abusive sort, for instance. It wasn't until he'd seen the way the Hikaru brothers interacted with each other that he'd even begun to question the dynamics of his own family.

"No. Sephiroth's not like Cloud at all." Riku answered. "He's not the sort to let people know what he's thinking or feeling. It's just not in his nature." Suddenly, Riku felt a pang of longing. He wanted to talk to Sephiroth again. To hear his voice and ask for his advice. Sephiroth always gave such good advice. The strength of the longing surprised him.

He wondered if Sora picked up on that. "Do you miss him?" The brunet asked.

Riku nodded. "He was sick when I left. He has Lunasis, like me, and he got an infection in his arm and the bruising was spreading through his chest. He'd just started getting better when I left."

"It must be hard to be away from your family."

The slave shrugged. Not particularly.

Sora sighed and rolled out of bed, standing up and stretching his arms out over his head. "Well, I guess we'd better go downstairs before Cloud comes back and yells at us." He grinned, and without thinking reached out to grab Riku's wrist. They were still tender from the healing bruises, but Riku bit his lip to keep from crying out. He let Sora drag him down the hall and back to the downstairs dining room, but refused to go in. It didn't feel right to him, eating in the dining room with his master's family.

Sora didn't press as Riku pulled free of his grasp and, with a quick, rushed, hesitant bow, turned and walked away without another word, leaving Sora to stare after him.

In the safety of the kitchen, Riku sat down at the counter and merely stared at the food Sara had left out for him. He wasn't hungry. He rarely was. But Sara wouldn't let him leave unless he ate something, so he dug his fork into the crumb cake, but stopped when he couldn't eat more than a few bites.

Sara came back into the kitchen, followed by Ingus. She frowned when she saw the boy's half eaten breakfast but said nothing as she and Ingus sat down to eat their own food. They ate in comfortable silence, content to say nothing at all, until Sara finished her plate and told Riku, "I have no need of you today. You should take a break, do something you want to do. When your classes start, you won't have very much free time."

Riku nodded, tried to think of something to do with his free time, and failed. "Are you sure I can't help you with chores?" He asked, for lack of a better thing to do.

Sara laughed lightly and shook her head. "Do something fun. If you're unsure of what to do, go spend some time with the boys. They won't mind, believe me."

Even though he'd been told, several times in fact, that he was supposed to be a companion for the twins, Riku still didn't like the idea of spending more time around them. To actively solicit time with them left Riku feeling awkward in a way he wasn't used to. In his world, it simply wasn't done.

So, as Sara began cleaning up breakfast dishes, Riku slipped away to his room, intent on taking a nap. The nightmare had left him restless and tired. Lethargy was nothing new for Riku; it tended to accompany every bad memory, but having a soft bed definitely made it ten times more tempting to indulge in his lethargic moments.

It would have been a heavenly nap, too, had Sora not interrupted it by poking his head in Riku's room barely half an hour later. Riku was lying on his bed, on top of the soft coverlet Sara had given him, and barely managed to hide his annoyance when the brunet's face appeared in the doorway. He sat up slowly, a bit surprised when Sora didn't enter.

"Did I wake you up?" Sora asked apologetically, even as he remained in Riku's doorway. Riku hadn't expected such a respect of space from the boy.

"No sir." The lie fell easily from his lips. Riku refused to meet Sora's eyes.

"Sara said you didn't have anything to do, so I thought I'd come find you. You know, she's had you all to herself for the last week. It's not fair!" With that proclamation, Sora bounded into the room and bounced up on the bed beside Riku. "Besides, I told you to call me Sora. Sir just makes me sound old."

Riku blinked. "Sorry sir." It was a force of habit.

The frown on Sora's face was almost cute, the way it didn't reach his eyes and yet made his upper lip poof out in a strangely endearing pout. A look like that made it hard for Riku to take him seriously.

That realization shocked Riku a bit, and then helped him relax.

"Not sir!" Sora tried his best to sound upset, but only managed a mix of annoyed and amused. "Sora, Sora, Sora! Repeat it after me, Riku. So-ra."

Feeling like a parrot – a foolish parrot nonetheless – Riku did as Sora ordered. "S-sora." He stuttered a bit, tensed, but relaxed again when Sora merely smiled broadly, showing off a row of even white teeth set in a dimpled face. Charismatic enough that Riku managed a small smile in return.

"Good! Now you have to call me Sora. And Cloud is Cloud and Roxas is Roxas, by the way. They aren't sirs either. Though I guess maybe Cloud is since he's an adult and soon to be a lord. But Roxas and I definitely aren't! Nope, not at all!"

"I'll try to remember Si-Sora."

Sora's smile didn't even falter as he responded, "You're really not good at this whole being friends thing, are you?"

_Not with freeborns, I'm not._ Riku thought sarcastically, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. As it was, he shifted a bit on the bed to make himself more comfortable and said, "Sorry."

"Hey, don't apologize! I'm not upset, I swear. It's just that… well… Palom and Porom used to play with Roxas and I all the time, and after they got over whatever issue they had with Cloud, they even started joking around his him too. I guess I kind of thought you'd be the same way."

Riku blinked. "I'm sorry." He told the boy, but even his voice lacked any true conviction. He wasn't. It wasn't his personality to lightly joke around with people, even the playfulness with his paramours was mostly an illusion designed to keep Kairi from noticing his true feelings. Not that it had ever worked, but Riku liked to pretend that he could at least keep his paramours from worrying about him, even if it was just a little.

"Nah, it's all right. I just figured I'd come bug you since Roxas is emoing out to bad pop music in the hammock in the backyard, which is boring." Sora replied. "I'd rather, you know, talk to someone or play a game or something."

_Then you probably shouldn't be here with me._ Riku kept his face carefully blank. "Where is ma-Cloud?" He asked, catching himself at the last minute.

"Oh, he went over to Tifa's house today. Her birthday's soon, but they've been spending an awful large amount of time together. I think it's love." Sora grinned. Riku blinked, and when he opened his eyes again, Sora's face was an inch apart. Riku managed not to flinch too far backwards, but it did surprise him, this sudden proximity. "Woah." The boy breathed. "Your eyes are really pretty. I thought they were green at first, but they're more like an ocean blue color." The nonsequiter, combined with the close proximity of the boy to his body, left Riku startled. "You're beautiful."

Immediately, Sora recoiled, pulling away as though burned. A blush spread across his cheeks. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to say that!"

Riku cocked his head to the side, unfazed. He wasn't surprised, but he hadn't expected Sora to be so… forward.

"I mean, not that you're not handsome or anything, because you are, but I didn't mean to make it awkward for you. I mean, how strange is it? We've barely known each other for a week and I'm already saying strange things. I'm sorry, I don't want to make it awkward between us." Sora continued, only to tack on lamely at the end, "And I don't even know if you even like boys."

He considered laughing, because he honestly didn't care, but decided that humor might not help his situation at the moment, so Riku said nothing at all.

As the silence that fell between them was just beginning to get awkward, Sora cast his eyes about the room and wrinkled his nose. "Wow, I forgot how small these rooms are. How can you stand it?"

Riku glanced around. It was good sized room, with a small bed, room for a desk, and still enough floor space that several people could sleep comfortably there. "It seems big to me." He admitted. "I like it."

"Ah! Sorry, I didn't mean to say anything that might offend you. I mean, it's not a bad room, just small…" Sora trailed off, having exhausted one thread of conversation. They fell into silence again.

"Hey Riku, I know this is a strange question, but have you ever been in love with someone?"

Riku glanced up, one eyebrow shooting into his hairline before he could stop himself. "What do you mean?" He asked, observing Sora's posture. The boy had his knees pulled to his chest and was busy inspecting the threads of Riku's coverlet.

"Like, Cloud's in love, I'm sure of it, even if he refuses to say anything. I mean, he and Tifa have been going out for _forever_ it seems, but neither will admit they like each other." He sighed. "I wonder what that's like. I've never been in love before, and Cloud refuses to tell me."

"I think it's different for every person." Riku said and then stopped himself. Did he just say that? It seemed too forward.

Sora merely peered at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

Riku shook his head. "C'mon, Rik', you can tell me. Tell me. Please! I want to know! What were you going to say? Falling in love is different how?"

_I don't know._ Riku thought to himself. It just _was_. Every person had their own unique quirk about it. He thought about Axel. For just a moment, he remembered Axel holding a stolen papou fruit in his hands, not saying anything at all to Riku as he handed it over unceremoniously. For Axel, it had been uncharacteristically sweet, and for Riku it was all the proof he needed. "Nothing. Nevermind."

"You're just as bad as Cloud! He always looks like he's about to say something and then he doesn't. I'm not a little kid you know, even if I am slower to pick up on this stuff than my friends." Riku was a bit surprised when he didn't flinch back at the harsh tone of Sora's voice. The boy was upset, and yet Riku couldn't bring himself to be intimidated.

"I'm sorry. It's just that I don't know how to explain it. Like, some people say love's just like friendship, and others think it means that nothing else exists in the world but the ones they love. It's just a matter of the way we feel."

"And how do you feel love?"

Riku paused, considered the question, opened his mouth, lied again. "It's like friendship to me."

Sora grinned, apparently satisfied now. "Nice! You know what we should do? We should go hunt down Roxas and start a card game. Maybe we can get him to play with us."

_Whoosh!_ Before Riku could blink, Sora had him out the door, dragging him by his still bruised wrist. All Riku could think for a few minutes however was that Sara was right; Sora really was scatterbrained.

Roxas was out in the yard when Sora and Riku found him. He's abandoned the hammock hanging between two trees and was now seated in the shade of one tree, a book open on his lap as music blasted from his headphones. Sora plopped down next to his twin and asked, "Whatcha doin'?"

"Reading." Roxas replied, not even missing a beat. "It's something you could stand to do more of."

Sora shrugged. "That's boring. I'd rather play a game. You're boring Roxas."

The blond rolled his eyes. "Then go find someone else. You have the slave; go play with him."

"But I want to play with you!"

"I'm reading."

Silence. Riku sat back against the tree and closed his eyes. This could take a while.

"… Please?" Sora asked.

"No."

"I'll tell everyone about your wish if you don't."

"Go ahead."

"You're no fun, Roxas."

Riku fell asleep listening to the argument.

* * *

Sara hadn't heard from the twins in a while, which was, in and of itself, unusual. So while she had a lull in her chores, she tried to track them down, finally ending in the backyard where she found them, fast asleep in the shade of a tree. Roxas on one side with a book over his stomach, Riku on the other, slumped with his head on Sora's shoulder, who was in the middle. She grinned and darted back inside to find the camera she knew the Director had stored away.

The photograph she snapped was a quick one, because already Roxas was beginning to wake up, and Sara didn't want him to see the camera because she knew he would try to delete the picture. With a mischievous smile, Sara returned to her chores, feigning innocence.

She'd have to show the picture to the Director later.

* * *

The University of Radiant Garden was easily the biggest place Riku had ever been in his life. The campus was positively _huge_ and seemed to stretch on forever. As if navigating the Hikaru household hadn't been hard enough; Riku thought for sure he'd never figure it all out here. Luckily, it wasn't that hard to find the classroom, and there was only one. The school had informed him that his summer classes (which consisted of an orientation class, a composition class, and a lower level physics class) would include only slaves and be taught in a single room. In the fall, when the students on summer break returned, Riku's classes would consist of others in his major. In fact, the likelihood that he would ever have another class with another slave in it was very low.

Knowing all this, however, didn't do much for the nervousness he felt rise in his chest as he found the classroom and pushed open the door to walk inside. There were several students already there, all identified by the silver collar and tags around their necks. He scanned the room quickly and his eyes fell on a familiar face. Rosa, the slave from the clinic, was seated at one of the tables in the back, next to another young woman about the same age with hair dyed a vibrant, breathtaking green. They were deep in conversation but Rosa glanced up briefly, smiled and waved.

Riku set his backpack (new, durable canvas fabric! The kind Riku had wanted in secondary school but, of course, could never have) next to the blond haired slave and asked, "Is anyone sitting here?"

Rosa shook her head. "Nope! Go ahead! It's good to see you again, Riku. Are you feeling better?"

Riku sat down. "Much better, thank you for asking." He answered politely.

"That's great! It looks like your bruises are about gone as well." Rosa turned back to the girl on her other side. "Rydia, this is Riku. He came into the clinic last week." She pointed to the girl. "Riku, this is Rydia, she's my best friend."

Introductions completed, the girls went back to talking, every once in a while turning to ask Riku a question as though trying to draw him into the conversation, but Riku mostly ignored their attempts, preferring to remain polite but distant.

It wasn't long before a pair of slaves only a couple years older than the rest of the students, a male and female, came into the room, which immediately became quiet. The female, a pretty young woman with her dark brown hair tied up in an intricate ponytail braid, set a moderate sized box down on the front table and pulled from it a manila envelope. The male, a well built but slender young man with a long dark scar stretching from his right eyebrow across his nose to his left cheekbone merely took up a position leaning against the front wall, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Good morning everyone!" The young woman greeted cheerfully. "I'm Aerith and the grumpy one is Squall. We're going to be your mentors, so you can come to either of us if you have any questions or problems."

Riku wondered vaguely if there was some sort of medicine that could make a person that Yevon-damned cheerful because a) he wanted some and b) he wanted to see if Sora was on it too.

Oblivious to Riku's sarcastic thoughts, Aerith continued on, holding up a small silver tag she'd fished out of the box. "Your teacher, Ms. Trepe, will be late because of a minor last minute emergency, but we can get started without her. These are identification tags, for those who don't know. You _must_ wear them on your collar anytime you are on school grounds. So, we're going to play a game to get to know each other. I'm going to hand out the tags and you're going to find the person whose tag you have and ask them for three facts about themselves. This way, you'll get to know each other!"

Yay. Riku resisted the urge to drop his head against the desk. It wasn't that he didn't want to meet his classmates, but this little game just struck him as being rather… juvenile. Still, he didn't complain as he accepted the tag Aerith gave him, grinning a bit as he read it.

_Rosa  
__Kadowaki Medical Center  
__Natural Medicine_

He turned to Rosa and Rydia who were puzzling over their own tags. Rydia had one for a slave named Celes, and Rosa had one for a slave named Zexion. He handed Rosa her tag. "I guess that means you have to tell me three things about yourself."

Rosa smiled and clipped her tag onto her collar. "Depends on what you want to know. I'm eighteen, I like books, and my favorite food is mochi dipped in chocolate sauce."

Riku raised his eyebrow. He'd never heard of mochi, but the idea of anything dipped in chocolate sauce didn't seem especially enticing to Riku, who hated all things sweet. He told Rosa that and the two began a discussion about food preferences (something Riku had never really thought about before) until a petite young man with dark silver hair cast over one eye stopped in front of them and, without pausing to wait for them to stop talking, asked, "Are you Riku?"

Riku paused midsentence and turned to stare at the boy. How rude, just butting in like that. Riku nodded his head and the boy threw his tag at him which Riku barely caught before it fell on the floor. Rosa looked equally affronted by the boy's abrupt manor. "Be a little more courteous!" She chastised. "There's no need to be so rude."

The boy turned to glare at her, and Riku noticed that his single visible eye was a pale blue tinted green. He had Lunasis. "I don't want to do this stupid activity, so tell me three things about you so I can go."

Riku arched an eyebrow. "Why should I? You can't even say please."

The boy growled in annoyance, but sat down in a chair across from Rosa and Riku. "Fine. Will you please tell me three things about yourself?"

"Much better! Now you have to introduce yourself properly." Rosa teased, a soft smile across her face.

The boy growled again, in the back of his throat. Riku thought he sounded about as terrifying as a puppy not yet weaned from his mother, considering how small he was. He only came up to Riku's shoulder (shorter than Rosa, even), and was just as thin, if not thinner than, Riku. "It's Zexion." He bit out, arms folded across his chest defensively.

Rosa gave a small whoop of excitement and handed over the tag she'd been holding onto. "Nice to meet you Zexion. I'm Rosa."

"I don't care what your name is."

Rosa drew back, affronted by Zexion's caustic mannerism. "Ouch! There's no need to be so rude. We're going to be in class together for the next ten weeks, so we might as well get to know each other. There's not very many slaves who are selected for training on university level, so we should try to get along."

"What a naïve viewpoint! I don't have time for this." Zexion carried on for a moment, not noticing when the silent mentor with the scarred face, Squall, came up behind him. With a quick swipe of his hand, Squall caught Zexion upside the head. Not enough to hurt, but enough that Zexion turned to him with a glare, rubbing where Squall had hit him. "Ow! What was that for?" He demanded.

"Moron readjustment." Squall told him, completely deadpan. "All three of you have a history in the labor camps. You'd do well to consider that before you go picking fights."

Riku turned to Rosa and, before he could contain his curiosity, asked her, "You're from a labor camp?"

"Not actually. I did a term last summer as healer's apprentice to Mist Labor Camp, the one Rydia's from. That's how I know her."

Riku tucked that information away for later. When he turned his attention back to Zexion, he saw that the boy had gone missing, though Squall still stood there. "Where did Zexion go?"

Squall shrugged. "He needed some time alone, so I sent him out. Don't worry about it." He paused as though he was going to add something, but didn't and walked away.

Rosa turned back to Riku and, without skipping a beat, resumed their previous conversation.

* * *

**References **

_...young woman about the same age with hair dyed a vibrant, breathtaking green._

Ah, Rydia. Where I hate Rosa, I adore Rydia. She's got a strong spirit and doesn't let others boss her around. She has no tolerance for flirts or slackers. I love her just because she seems to be the only character in Final Fantasy IV who tells people to shut up, stop whining, and get over it. Even though she has a tragic past, she doesn't let it rule her life, and she has a very keen bullshit detector. In this story, she's a minor character who is friends with Rosa.

**Next Chapter**: Riku writes a letter and makes obscure Final Fantasy IX references, we learn a bit more about Zexion, Cloud and Riku spend some time together, and Cloud is either a closet bastard or seriously misguided (I will leave that up to you to decide).

**Reviews are fantastic. It only takes a few minutes to tell me what you think, and I love you all the more for it. **


	5. Tension

**REVISED 9/10/10**: Well, there's kind of a sex scene in this chapter. I will have you know that sex is very hard to write. Like, ten times harder than anything else is. Ahh! Also, the next chapter is almost finished. It will be out in the next two weeks. Phew. Internship killed me, school is killing me, and next week I will be cosplaying at another convention... so, yeah. The insanity begins again.

But I'm excited to be back, nonetheless. Hope everyone missed me! ~Lockea

Bonus points go to anyone who recognizes the poem Riku writes in his notebook. It should look familiar to a few of you.

_To **Le Shea **for being there when I complain. To **Your Alien** and **batcat4eternity** for the encouragement. To **Sakura-chan79** for her continued support and analysis (and for readdicting me to TV Tropes). And, finally, last but not least, to the amazing **Shibara**, whom I profusely apologize to for lying (I promised this chapter would be out sooner than this). I APOLOGIZE TO THE WORLD! XD Anyway, you guys are my support and inspiration. Stay classy._

* * *

**Chapter Four: Tension**

_Dear Kairi,_

_I hope this letter finds you well. It seems like forever ago that we last spoke, but when I count the days, it's only been just over a week. How is Axel? I know you're doing fine – you're the strongest girl I know, but I always worry for Axel. He always needs someone to watch out for him. I also know that you're looking out for my brother too. If someone doesn't, he'll work himself to death. I hope he's doing well, especially since he refuses to take another more reliable paramour. Sephiroth can be such an idiot at times._

_I've been trying to think of what I wanted to say to you in the last few days. For once, it feels like my ability to write has failed me. I promised myself that I wouldn't write about my new life, but without this I don't know what else to talk about._

_My new master frightens me, but he's never done anything cruel to me. In fact, I barely ever see him. Private slaves have something similar to a guard, called a handler. My handler's name is Sara and she's very nice. She's married to a former slave, the man who came to retrieve me, Ingus. He's nice as well, but a bit distant. I'm not afraid of either of them, because they make me think of Guardsman Fair. (Which, I hope you will remember, he's the one you'll need to go to from now on if you need anything, but you should already know that, since he will be the one who receives this letter and passes it on to you.)_

_My master's sons scare me a bit. Cloud is nice. A little distant at times, but I like him. He always talks to me in the mornings, and doesn't get upset with me when I make a mistake, unlike his brothers. I know that Cloud likes me, so I'm afraid of the day when it becomes tangible, more than an attraction. (Listen to me, just carrying on about my own insecurities. I'm not a child on the eve of his fourteenth! It's not like I've never had sex before, but I still hate that insecurity which precedes a new relationship. I don't mind, per se, especially since he strikes me as someone gentle.) Ah, I should shut up now, it's not as though I'm evaluating a paramour. He's freeborn, and he may do as he pleases._

_The twins are a bit less worrisome, I think. They're a little bit younger than you, being just a few weeks past seventeen. Roxas mostly just ignores me. I don't think he feels one way or another about me. I'm fine with that. Sora, however, has a tendency to terrify me. He's very forceful, and his personality is like a hurricane blowing in; he doesn't understand his own destructive force. I'm sure he means well, but the other day he had me absolutely frightened because he told me I had pretty eyes. All I can think about is that the last time someone free had told me I had pretty eyes, it ended rather badly for me. Intellectually, I know that Sora would never hurt me, but try telling that to my heart._

_I guess I should stop taking up space on paper with my own disjointed ramblings. I meant to write a poem and send it to you, but I haven't had the time. So here's my half assed version, just for you._

_Red roses for Kairi  
__Axel gets a canary  
__Because I'm cheap  
__The bird won't make a peep  
__It's the kind you can eat  
__But that's 'cause you're sweet._

_I hope this brightens up your day. I hope that, though I'm gone, you and Axel will still think of me kindly, as your beloved canary._

_I love you still,_

_Riku_

* * *

The office of Slave Affairs had a comfortable seating area with a few couches and a low coffee table. Riku found this out as he sat on one of the couches with six other slaves and Squall scattered about it, Rosa and Zexion among them. Riku knew who each slave was, tentatively, because they'd gone around and introduced themselves. Rydia, Rosa's friend. The pretty blond with her curly hair tied back in a scarf was Celes. A shy looking boy with short cropped blond hair was Vaan, and an excitable blond with his hair spiked upward in a way that reminded Riku, vaguely, of Cloud had introduced himself as Zell. And Riku had once thought Genesis was annoying.

Riku wasn't quite sure why they were there, but Squall had pulled them out first thing that morning and brought them over here where he'd had them introduce themselves. An awkward silence had descended among them for a moment before Squall dropped a stack of composition notebooks on the coffee table and took a seat beside Zell. "Those are for you. Do whatever you want with them, but you have to turn them back in at the end of summer." He explained, gesturing to the stack.

Rosa reached out first to grab one, flipping it open as the others followed suit reluctantly. "But there's nothing in here. It's blank."

"Yes. Your job is to fill it up. It's easy to do if you write class notes in there, but Quistis will get mad if you do that."

Zell chuckled, he already had a pen in hand and was doodling on the first page. "Are you speaking from experience Squall?"

Squall didn't even dignify that with a response. Zexion, who Riku was beginning to suspect would be the problem child of their strange little group, huffed and threw his notebook back on the table. "What an idiotic idea! What in the world possessed that woman to believe we'd benefit from such a juvenile practice?"

Beside Riku, Rosa rolled her eyes, closing her own book and putting it gently back on the table. "Oh, don't complain so much! It's not like we have to write a novel in here. Just write about yourself or something. That's not hard to do, is it?"

Zexion rose to his feet, as though the small change in height would somehow make him more intimidating to the taller Rosa. "Don't patronize me! You don't know anything about me or my life!" With a huff, he stormed away, walking away from his second fight with Rosa in as many days. Riku felt a headache coming on as he wondered whether this was destined to become the norm. He hoped not.

Squall rose a few seconds after Zexion left, wordlessly leaving the teens to go hunt down Zexion. Rosa sighed and picked her notebook back up. To no one in particular, she said, "Honestly! That boy is going to drive me crazy. If he didn't look so much like…" She trailed off before she shook her head and added, "Nevermind. It's none of my business."

Zell laughed and with a grin he showed off the doodle he had done in the front of his notebook. Riku stared at it for a few minutes before recognizing the simplistic childlike caricatures of Rosa and Zexion. They were holding a book between them, each one pulling on it with exaggerated force as they yelled at each other. Riku laughed. Rosa glanced over to see what he was laughing at, then promptly hid a grin behind one hand. "That's actually a pretty good drawing." She complimented.

Zell beamed. "Hey, you don't live with Radiant Garden's next artistic prodigy and not pick up a few tips. It also helps that I'm naturally talented." His bragging was lighthearted, and achieved the desired effect of lightening the mood in the room.

Riku turned his attention back to his notebook, trying to decide what to write. As if by instinct alone, he found himself reciting familiar words.

_The sun sets on my desire  
__Within it all my life require  
__I am no more than I am not  
__Yet all I've lost and all I've got  
__For them to take  
__And them to break_

He paused after a moment to observe the lines, and words he'd memorized long ago. He'd written the entire poem, a monster of a thing that stretched across two notebook pages in length, when he was fourteen. It had been the first poem he'd ever written, and certainly far from the last. Riku didn't write these poems because he was good at it – in fact, he was downright terrible – he wrote them because they were a way to express himself, to vent all his anger and frustration. He'd filled notebooks with the lines, trying out every kind of poem he could think of (free verse was his favorite), but now those books were back in Destiny.

For a moment, Riku considered transcribing the rest of the poem in the notebook, but then decided against it. He scribbled out what little he had written, and began to write about something else instead.

* * *

Meanwhile, Squall had managed to track Zexion down and found the boy sitting on a bench outside, staring angrily at a bush a few feet away. If looks could kill, the bush would have been a flaming pile of cinder by now. Squall plopped down on the bench next to the brooding teenager. "Talk." He ordered simply.

"About what?" The teenager spat back, turning his glare on Squall instead. At least he didn't run off again.

"Dunno. Anything. Whatever's got you fighting with Rosa, preferably."

Zexion crossed his arms and went back to staring at the plant silently. That was fine, Squall could wait. Hell, hadn't his master once told him that he could outwait a glacier if he wanted to? It was what made him so good with the troubled ones, much as Squall hated to admit it.

"She's a bitch." Zexion decided suddenly. "She acts like she knows everything when her prissy ass doesn't know shit."

Squall blinked. "That's harsh. Have you actually talked to her before yesterday?"

"No, but I know her kind. They get in your business and act like they know what's best. They don't care what you say or think or feel. They just take and destroy, because it's part of their god complex."

Squall got the feeling they weren't talking about Rosa anymore. He debated whether to press the issue or not, but before he could decide Zexion continued on with a sigh.

"Then they smile and say, 'I'm sorry you aren't happy, but it's for the greater good.' But that's not true at all." For a moment, Zexion became lost in the memory.

_Sad, expressive eyes of a man who never said much of anything at all, but always listened. Arms holding Zexion back so he couldn't run to his side. A woman with a syringe kneeling, poised to take a life. _Don't take him!_ Zexion wanted to scream. He struggled, but it was useless. He remembered the last words, almost like a whisper, and it killed Zexion inside to read them on his lips. "I love you."_

Squall could regret this later on, but for the time being he decided it was best just to wing it. "What happened?" He pressed.

Nothing, however, could prepare him for what Zexion said next, his voice completely devoid of emotion.

"They killed my paramour."

* * *

A subdued air hung over the class for the rest of the afternoon. After Squall had returned with Zexion, it was time to return to the classroom with the other students, the private slaves, Squall had explained, and actually start doing academic things. Riku was grateful for the distraction, but it didn't stop him from noticing how depressed Zexion seemed, and the strange shortness of temper Squall had suddenly developed. Whatever had happened when Squall went after Zexion had undeniably altered their mood for the day.

The afternoon couldn't come soon enough, and by three Riku was incredibly grateful to be out of the oppressive air of the classroom. Sara had told him that either she or Ingus would come pick him up from school, so it came as a surprise to Riku when he saw that is was Cloud instead, leaning against his car with his arms folded across his chest. He looked like he was trying to do a rather successful impersonation of the disinterested movie star. The blond hair man greeted him with a wave.

"Hey Riku, would you mind waiting for a moment while I take care of something? It should only take me a few minutes." Cloud asked, as though Riku had any say in the matter. What was he going to say anyway? 'No Cloud, take me home right now'? As if.

"Yes sir." Riku bowed slightly and set his bag in the car. It was hot in there, so he took a seat outside instead. Cloud nodded and ran off.

Cloud knew his way around the administration building fairly well by now. After all, he was going into his third year at the University of Radiant Garden, and after a while even a huge campus became easy to navigate. He even knew exactly where to find the person he was looking for, and was unsurprised to find him alone in the office he shared with his boss and coworker, typing away obliviously at his computer.

"Hey Squall, haven't seen you in a while." Cloud greeted, leaning against the door frame and staring at the brunet with a small smile.

Instantly, the sound of keys being hit ceased and brown eyes lifted to regard Cloud with barely contained contempt. "Young Lord Hikaru." Squall greeted dryly, "What a… _pleasant_ surprise." His voice implied it was anything but.

Cloud's smile turned into a full out grin as he sauntered across the room to take a seat on Squall's desk. "No need to be so cold. I thought I'd come by to apologize for the other day. I didn't mean to upset you."

Squall resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Stupid, spoiled, obtuse nobility. "Fine. Apology accepted. Now leave."

"That's rather cold of you Squall. Here I am pouring my heart out and you're treating me callously. I wonder what your master would say if he knew."

Squall slammed his fists against his desk as he rose to he was eye to eye with the blond. "Get. Out." He ground out through clenched teeth. "Or with Hyne as my witness, I will hit you again."

If anything, Cloud's smile became more smug as he rose to his feet. "How cruel. That's all right, I'm sure Riku will be much more accommodating than you are. He is a rather pretty thing, don't you agree."

If Cloud had been acting to elicit a reaction from the slave, then he succeeded, because before he had time to blink, Squall had pulled his hand back behind his ear in a fist, ready to punch Cloud in the face. Cloud smiled. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. It might be one thing to hit me on your own time, but hitting a freeborn while in Quistis Trepe's office? Do you really think the school would let you stay here after such an action?"

For a moment, Squall actually looked like he was planning to punch Cloud, but finally he lowered his fist reluctantly and asked dully, "Are you fucking him?"

"I fail to see how that's any of your business."

"It is my business!" It was hardly perceptible, but Squall's voice rose just a fraction of a decibel. "I am his mentor. It's my job to be concerned about his health and state of mind."

Cloud smirked. "And I'm his master, which means I can do as I please." He leaned in close enough that his lips were almost brushing against Squall's ear. "Unless you'd like to give me what I asked for last time we spoke like this."

Abruptly, and with more force than was strictly necessary, Squall shoved Cloud away from him, his brown eyes smoldering as he regarded the noble with a hatred so strong it was tangible. "You, Cloud Hikaru, are a bastard. Get out of here before I kill you."

Cloud laughed, but he jumped off the table and said with a smirk, "Offer still stands, any time you want it Squall." He sauntered back to the doorway, prepared to go.

Behind him, he heard Squall growl out a particularly vehement "Fuck you!" before the door slammed shut behind him.

To himself, Cloud whispered, "I'd love you to, Squall."

* * *

Riku let out a contented sigh as he sank deeper into the warm pool of water that was the servant's bathtub. He was starting to get spoiled by always getting to bath in warm water, but it was a kind of spoiled that Riku didn't mind but rather preferred to embrace. There were a great many things Riku missed; the sound of the ocean at night, Axel's pranks, the sound of Kairi's heartbeat as the three of them fell asleep together in a tangle of limbs. He missed the way Sephiroth listened quietly to all his problems and always had the right answer, and the way Genesis recited poetry with such a dramatic passion that the words felt so real Riku could see the story play out in his mind. He missed the evenings when they'd all gathered in one of their homes, and by the light of the hearth did their homework together, each one of them praying to any higher power that they would pass the SIAT and make it out of Destiny.

But for every one thing that Riku did miss, there were at least three others that he didn't miss; cold water drawn from a wellspring on the north side of the island, not having electricity, the cloying smoke of the hearth fires that heated every home, never having enough food because being a student meant that he didn't work, and slaves who didn't work didn't get fed.

As the hot water soothed muscles that had become cramped from an afternoon spent studying, Riku knew that everything he'd gained far outweighed everything he'd lost. He'd known it would be like that.

It was easy to become so relaxed that he almost fell asleep in the tub, but a voice startled Riku out of his sleepy thoughts. "May I join you?"

Riku's eyes snapped open and he spun to face the doorway, where Cloud was leaning against it, wearing nothing but a pair of loose fitting pants and a smile that Riku couldn't read. Riku shrugged and settled back in the water.

Cloud took Riku's indifference as acceptance and undressed, settling himself in the warm water, not far away from where Riku was. Riku raised one half lidded eye at the man, but didn't point out that, in such a large tub, there was plenty of space for him at the _other_ end, where he wasn't on the edge of Riku's personal space. Cloud ignored him and sighed in content as the hot water washed over him. "If there's one bonus to living in a large house, it's having this tub. Even if it is, strangely, in the servant's quarters."

Before Riku could stop himself, he asked, "Just how old is this house, anyway?"

Cloud shrugged, closing his eyes and leaning back. "According to my uncle, it was built just before the revolution, when King Mortimer succeeded his throne to Ansem the Wise and his new Oligarchy." His eyes flickered open briefly, observing the room. "I believe him. This house is ancient. According to Uncle Yuri, it's always been in the Hikaru family."

Riku vaguely remembered reading about the revolution in school. He'd found it strange that the King would succeed the throne so quickly and easily, despite having won not only wars against distant enemies, but the affection of his people as well. Something about the story hadn't made sense. However, what Riku wanted to know more about right now was the uncle Cloud had mentioned. Thus far, no one in the Hikaru family had given any indication of family outside the immediate four members. He mentioned that to Cloud, who merely smiled at him.

"Yes, well, that's because Father doesn't get along with either of my uncles. Uncle Yuri is my mother's younger brother. You'll probably meet him sooner or later, since he manages all the experiments at the lab. Uncle Cid is Dad's brother, though I doubt you'll get to meet him. Last time we saw him was at Mother's funeral. He and Dad don't get along at all."

_Oh._ "Oh." Well, there was nothing else to say about that, unless he wanted to get himself in trouble for prying to deeply, and as curious as Riku was, he wasn't that curious.

Silence settled comfortably between them, each lost in their own thoughts. It surprised Riku when Cloud spoke suddenly, his voice much closer that Riku anticipated. The blond had moved so that he was a mere foot away while Riku had been lost in thought.

"Riku." He said, his voice soft next to his ear. "How did you get that wound on your back?"

For the most part, Riku had forgotten about the healing knife wound that streaked across his shoulders, as the memory of its reception had joined one of dozens other similar incidents and had ceased to register strongly with him. Thus, unlike when Dr. Farrell had asked about it so shortly after its infliction, Riku sighed and answered honestly. "An overzealous guard with an unhealthy affiliation with knives."

Cloud moved suddenly, approaching Riku who regarded him warily but did nothing to stop the blond as he settled himself at Riku's back and very carefully leaned down to kiss the top of the healing scab. "I'm sorry. It must have been awful. I couldn't ever imagine being a slave."

Another shrug, and another answer. "That's good. You shouldn't try to imagine bad things. Only good things, and nothing good comes of being a slave." Again, Riku had spoken before he'd fully thought the words through, and when what he said sunk in, the slave snapped his mouth shut and held his breath, waiting for Cloud's anger.

But Cloud merely laughed lightly, his lips trailing from Riku's back to the place where his shoulder met his neck, kissing gently. He didn't say anything for a few minutes, and Riku felt another stupid statement waiting to burst from his mouth.

"You don't have to seduce me." Oh, Ramuh! The hot water must have addled his brains. Riku couldn't believe he'd just said that to Cloud. "I mean, I'm a slave. You needn't waste your efforts."

Again, though, Cloud didn't seem angry, merely amused. "But what if I _want_ to seduce you?" He teased, soft kisses punctuating each word. Riku sighed lightly as one kiss sent a slight tingling through his body and down to his toes. It was too pleasant to protest against too loudly. Another kiss, followed by a short nip as Cloud's teeth brushed against sensitive skin, and Riku moaned softly despite himself. Cloud grinned against his skin. "I take it no one's bothered to seduce you before?"

Riku took a deep, steadying breath before he dignified that with a response. "My paramours, when they wanted something from me."

Another laugh. "Then you should be used to this by now." Another nip, and Cloud's mouth moved lower. Riku's breath caught in his throat, the unexpected sensations of sheer pleasure rolling through his body left his mind hazy. Riku tried to keep his thoughts intact, but it was a battle he was quickly losing, his own will becoming subject to Cloud's pleasure. "Don't worry, I'll make it good for you."

_Don't bother._ Riku thought, but said nothing. In truth, it was kind of nice, this promise of Cloud's. He forced thoughts of Axel and Kairi, and the feel of their hands on his skin, away from his mind as Cloud half lifted half guided Riku to his feet and led him out of the tub and too Riku's bedroom nearby, all the while kissing, touching, stroking, leaving Riku breathless and dizzy.

If this was how all nobles had sex, than Riku considered himself maybe becoming a fan, instead of merely enduring it for the sake of others. He dismissed the thought as soon as it occurred. No way was that going to happen.

Like a particularly fragile doll, Cloud laid Riku out across the bed and knelt over him, water from his hair tickling Riku's skin as he explored, a talented tongue across warm skin, exploring each of Riku's many scars, even the tiny ones across his collar and down his chest. Caught up in the sensation, Riku barely noticed, and barely tensed, when one wet finger teased and pressed against his rear, stroking and massaging. Riku groaned in pleasure, his hands unwillingly finding Cloud's shoulders and nails digging gently into his skin.

Cloud smiled, "Easy Riku," He teased, "this won't hurt."

Riku didn't hear. He was trying to remember how to breathe as one talented finger found that spot inside where stars lit up across his eyes, and the whole world tilted on its side. The sensation of arousal, frighteningly unfamiliar to Riku, took hold and added to his disorientation.

He did tense when he felt something large and blunt press against his ass, as Cloud finally finished his teasing seduction. But rather than continuing, which would have been painful for Riku, Cloud pulled back, and pressed his lips against Riku's. "Shh," He whispered, "I keep my promises."

It took a few moments for Riku to relax, but it was impossible not too with Cloud's lips against his and one hand teasing his skin. Nor did it last much longer afterwards, as Cloud's thrusts, though slow at first, were precise and world shattering. Within minutes, Riku came and Cloud immediately afterwards. The blond collapsed against the slave's chest, pulling him closer into a tight embrace as his drifted off into sleep.

It could have been worse, Riku admitted to himself. Tired, but not tired enough to sleep, not with Cloud so close by, Riku's mind wandered. He'd never felt such pleasure before. With his paramours, it was always about release and trust, and not about the seductive, sensual skill Cloud had used. With the others… well, they'd never much cared about skill either. Afterall, who needed to waste such time on a slave?

Still, as pleasant (_amazing_, his mind unhelpfully reminded him) as it was, it was _not_ Kairi and it was _not _Axel, and not matter how nice Cloud was, it certainly _wasn't_ about Riku's pleasure. And for that reason, if for no other, Riku felt a pang of longing for the two of them. For clumsy inexperience, for hope and desperation and physical comfort. At least that was real.

At least that was his.

If nothing else, he missed his former paramours all the more because of this.

* * *

Riku awoke to find Cloud already gone, without any trace of last night save Riku's bathrobe lying on the floor of the bathroom when the boy was normally so meticulous with his clothing. With a sigh, the slave rose and went about his morning routine as if nothing had happened the night before.

He heard voices arguing softly when he approached the kitchen, but they stopped the moment he walked in as both Sara and Ingus, who were standing on the other side of the room, turned to look at him. Cloud was nowhere to be seen. Sara immediately smiled at him. "Morning Riku! How are you feeling this morning?"

Riku smiled back and took a seat at the counter. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" Ingus asked.

The pale haired slave raised an eyebrow at the concern in Ingus's voice. "Yes, is there a reason why I shouldn't be?" He asked, letting his curiosity take over.

Ingus didn't answer him, merely regarded him with a silent intensity. It was Sara who finally said, "Well, no. But Cloud's not exactly sweetness and light when he gets it into his head that seducing slaves is a good idea. It wouldn't be the first time he accidentally hurt someone with his remarkably poor judgment."

Riku cocked his head to the side. For some reason, the news didn't surprise him, though he did have to wonder _which_ slaves Cloud had slept with. Promiscuity was such a strange habit.

"No. I'm fine." Riku said, at exactly the same time Sara piped up and added, "I can make Cloud stop."

Sara paused again to glance at Ingus, who shrugged, and then turned her attention back to Riku. "What I mean is, I can talk to him. He usually listens to me. Or, he better if he doesn't want burnt food for the next three years. If I talk to him, tell him that you don't like it, I bet he'll stop. It's worked before."

Riku couldn't help himself; he grinned at Sara, a sincere smile. "Really, I'm fine. I don't mind it. Please don't bother."

Ingus, in a move that baffled Riku, turned and left without a word. Sara started after him before she stopped and sighed. The blond haired woman leaned against the counter and dropped her head down in her arms, with an audible thunk as she hit her head softly against the countertop. "I should go after him." She muttered. "But I'm not going to."

"Why?" Riku asked, still puzzling over Ingus's sudden departure.

"'Cause he's pissed off right now, and he always says things he doesn't mean when he's pissed off."Sara glanced up at Riku. "It's a bit of a sore spot for him, Cloud's behavior. Ingus can't stand that you're taking this so much better than –" She cut off suddenly, rising and turning away from Riku as she fussed with something on the counter. "Well, anyway, I should get back to breakfast."

Riku thought about it for a while as Sara busied herself making a breakfast casserole of some sort and toast for Riku (which was on the very short list of foods that didn't make Riku sick after eating it). After ten minutes of silence between them, Sara finally spoke. "I need to remember to speak to the Director after breakfast."

Riku perked up at that. "Why?" Not that it was any of his business or anything, but Sara never seemed to mind his curiosity, so steadily Riku had begun asking more questions.

"Well, if you must know, I am planning to ask for a raise. Ingus and I have been married for a few years now and we feel like we're ready to take the next step and start a family. _But_, and of course there's a but here, Ingus and I don't make enough money to raise a child. We barely make enough, between us, to cover our current expenses, let alone the expense of a child." She leaned down on the counter and added with a smirk, "Being a commoner sucks. You'll never hear a noble debate whether they have enough money for a family."

Riku thought about that for a few moments and then said, without really thinking about it, "It sounds almost like a different sort of slavery."

Sara bristled, and Riku knew instantly that he'd made her mad. "It is _not._" She insisted. "For one thing, Ingus and I are much happier living in a tiny apartment in town than we ever were living here in the servant's quarters."

"And? I'm much happier living here in this house than I was living in the camps, but it doesn't make me any less of a slave just because my owner gives me a bed and three decent meals a day!" Riku snapped, not willing to back down now, not with Sara who was more like a big sister than a master. "Does it really make a difference what your station is if you still answer to another's whims? You need the Director's permission to get a raise to start a family, and if he says no then you can't. He's your master, even if you don't have to call him such."

"That's not true at all! I knew him when – " For the second time that morning, Sara broke off midsentence before turning around and saying. "Just go away, would you?"

Without a word, and unremorseful for riling Sara up so badly, Riku grabbed a slice of toast off the counter and wandered out to the backyard to sulk for a while.

* * *

**References**

_Axel gets a canary_

An obscure reference to Final Fantasy IX. In that game, a true love is known as a person's canary. Like, Garnet is Zidane's Canary. There's a play in the game called "I Want to Be Your Canary." The play exists and is mentioned in this story. Of course Riku, being literature savvy, would know this and the references. Expect this come back and haunt the plot later (alongside "Loveless" and "Darkness and Starlight", of course).

_The pretty blond with her curly hair tied back in a scarf was Celes. A shy looking boy with short cropped blond hair was Vaan, and an excitable blond with his hair spiked upward in a way that reminded Riku, vaguely, of Cloud had introduced himself as Zell._

Celes is one of the three main characters in Final Fantasy VI. Think of a non-crazy, female version of 7's Sephiroth and you have a good idea of Celes. She's cold and commanding, but she has her insecurities (particularly around people), and her own set of hopes and dreams. In this story, she's a minor character who will be mentioned in passing a couple of times, because she's going to do something either brave or stupid. You'll have to decide which.

Vaan is the main(?) character of Final Fantasy XII. He's an orphan from the streets of Rabanastre who becomes caught up in rather significant events. In this story, he's a slave from Sandstorms (the big camp that's receiving media attention currently). He's a minor character until parts two and three, but I don't want to spoil anything there. ^.~).

Zell is a character from Final Fantasy VIII. He's highly energetic and has a childish, one track personality. In this story, he's Squall's paramour and the person who balances him best, trying his hardest to stay upbeat for the sake of his loved ones. He hates conflict and likes history.

_...when King Mortimer succeeded his throne to Ansem the Wise and his new Oligarchy._

Mortimer Mouse was the original name for Mickey Mouse, but Disney's wife thought Mortimer was too stern of a name, so she suggested Mickey instead. This is probably the ONLY Disney reference you'll get, since it's kind of a well known fact that I deplore Disney with an intensity that outshines my hatred traffic, bad wine, and poor writing (coughFFXVIIIcough).

**Next Chapter**:Squall gets in trouble. Sara and Riku fight some more. Riku meets Reno and some unfortunate truths come to light, and Riku takes his paramour's advice and trusts his heart to Sora.

**So, I realized when writing this chapter that there are a lot of questions raised here. If you want to see them answered, you'll have to review, as reviews are my muses.**


	6. Strife

I live! This summer... killed me. And I really did not want to write this chapter. Why? Well... because I wasn't happy with it. And I'm still not happy with it. But at least I wrote it. Sorry it's so short. Also, if you did not, please go back and reread chapter four, as it contains an updated scene. :)

This chapter focuses primarily on Cloud. In fact, ever scene in it has to do with Cloud in some way. Hence the name. I'm probably going to rush through these next few chapters because I'm tired of part one, and I want to get to part two. Again, I apologize for the poor writing. I'm sure I will revise it someday.

So, what really motivated me to come back to this story was not reviews, because I only got four (and one of them was from my sister). Though, let it be known to batcat4eternity and shibara - I love you guys. Thank you so much for your reviews. Anyway, I came back because I've been playing Birth By Sleep and every time Ienzo comes on screen I have to gush and think "awww, he's so cute for a schemer." And, of course, Riku's precociousness is adorable too. So, yeah, it was actually a mix of Birth By Sleep and my two cosplay friends (who do Sora and Riku like, every week), who motivated me back to this.

As per the norm, I'd like to take the time to thank the wonderful and amazing people who reviewed this story. **Batcat4eternity**, **Shibara**, **Tainted Kattitina**, and **EppieandKarma**. Thank you for your patience with me. You guys rock. :)

* * *

**Chapter Five: Strife**

An hour or so later, Sora came out to the backyard where Riku was reading and eating toast under the big tree where he and the twins had fallen asleep together only a few days ago. Without a word, Sora sat down beside Riku and peered over his shoulder at the textbook Riku had propped open on his lap.

"_Entropy_." Sora read aloud. "What's that?"

"It's a unit to measure the disorder in a system at a molecular level, such as energy wasted in the system. Some scientists theorize that it's how we perceive the fourth dimension." Riku stated without thinking or looking up.

Sora merely stared at him blankly, and Riku couldn't help but chuckle. "For example, if you have tea in a cup and you add milk and sugar, at first the milk and sugar are sort of separate from the tea, but then you stir it and it all becomes mixed together to the point where they can never be separated again. That's entropy." Riku explained, and gestured to a diagram in his book. "But really it's used to explain thermodynamics."

"I don't get it."

"That's okay, it's rather esoteric. I don't fully get it myself either." Riku admitted.

"But you're so smart, Riku! You're the smartest person I know, even after Olette, and she's really smart." Sora admitted, leaning back against the tree to contemplate the clouds overhead. Riku didn't know what to say, so he went back to reading. He had moved on to isentropic processes now.

After a while, Sora finally said, "Everyone's been acting so strange today. Cloud's gone like usual, but Sara's mad, really really mad, and you're out here instead of in your room, which is weird for you, and even Dad's acting weird. Is it a full moon or something?"

Riku was surprised Sora had been observing him enough to know how unusual it was for him to go outside. Riku hated studying outside, but the prospect of studying in his room where Cloud and he had… anyway, he was avoiding his room for a reason.

"I think I made Sara mad." The slave admitted, ducking his head to hide his face in the book. "I said some things I shouldn't have."

Sora shook his head. "No, that's not it. Sara doesn't care about what you say, only about what you do, and she never gets angry over little things. Not ever. Last time she got this mad was shortly after Mom died. Cloud did something, I don't know what, and Sara was really angry about it for a really long time."

Riku had a sneaking suspicion he knew what Cloud's something was, but he didn't want to jump to any conclusions. That wouldn't be a good idea.

"Did something happen this morning?" Sora asked.

The slave shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe, maybe not. Sara doesn't tell me everything."

"Oh." For some reason, Sora sounded really depressed. "Sorry, that was a stupid question."

Sora got up and left. Later, Riku wondered if he shouldn't have called after him.

* * *

It was mid afternoon before Riku saw Sara again, and he only saw her because she had a letter for him, a reply from Kairi. However, it did give them a chance to talk briefly about what had happened in the kitchen that morning, which Sara prefaced by saying, "You may not be free, but there are certain things you shouldn't be forced to do just because you're a slave."

Riku raised one silver eyebrow. "If this is about Cloud and I—"

"Of course it's about Cloud." Sara interrupted a little more forcefully than was strictly necessary. "He's like a brother to me and I love him, I always will, but he's a spoiled brat who thinks he's owed the world just because the Hikaru family is high nobility. Moreover, he doesn't realize how much he unintentionally hurts the rest of us with his arrogance."

"But he didn't hurt me." Riku was confused. So Cloud wanted him because he was a slave. Fine, Riku got that, he was an easy target. Whatever. But he hadn't hurt Riku, so Riku failed to see what Sara's problem was.

"Not physically! Emotionally! It's rape Riku, any time you're not fully committed to the other person. He raped you last night and you're standing here like it doesn't bother you."

"It doesn't." So it was a white lie. Riku was bothered by how much he'd enjoyed it. Normally he hated sex. Period. End of story. Even with Axel and Kairi it was always for their sake. "And it's not rape." Such a strong word. Whenever Riku thought of rape, he thought of children, not an adult like himself. "Helotian Law says—"

"Screw Helotian Law." Sara spat. "I won't stand here and let you play some gods' damned martyr to Cloud's arrogance."

"Why not?" Riku asked, exasperated. "You're the one standing here preaching about choices, so why not let me decide for myself?"

"Because I did that once, long ago. You think you're the first slave Cloud's raped? I stood aside because Ingus asked me to, but bruises and flinching from touch and saying your okay because that's how you're holding on… no one should live like that. So don't."

Riku opened his mouth to respond, but promptly closed it when the sound of footsteps alerted them to an eavesdropper. It was Roxas, looking for Sara, so Riku took his letter and escaped from this difficult conversation.

* * *

"Squall?"

The man in question, dressed in comfortable training clothes and holding a wooden practice sword at the ready, lowered his weapon and turned to face the speaker. "Master Loire." He greeted tonelessly.

Laguna Loire was not an old man, despite being just past forty in age. He looked at least ten years younger, without a gray in his full brown hair, which he grew to mid back, as was fashionable. As a retired body guard himself, Laguna now ran his own business supplying the upper class with well trained body guards, usually certified dociles. Despite this, he still retained the active shape and figure of his younger years, and could best any and all of those under his charge, including his prodigy Squall.

"Squall," Laguna repeated, "we need to talk." He spoke seriously, which was against his usual nature. "There's something you didn't tell me about the incident with Lord Hikaru's oldest son last week."

The slave merely stared at him, expression blank. "There's nothing to be said, master. I was out of line and should never have hit him."

"That's not the story I heard from Zell."

Squall felt his eye twitch, just slightly. Leave it to Zell to go running to the master with secrets that were best kept among slaves. "What did he say?"

"That's what I want you to tell me." Laguna answered. When Squall merely looked away, his jaw clenched shut in a refusal to speak, Laguna sighed and added, "You're very close to the end of your training and soon there will be little more you'll need to learn. However, I can't finish your training if you lie to me at every turn. I need to know that I can trust you."

"Master, I know that in this line of work there can be no secret between slave and master, but what was said between Cloud Hikaru and me is not important."

Squall neither expected nor anticipated the slap that followed as Laguna struck him across the face. It wasn't that Squall had never been slapped by him before – in fact, Laguna's preferred 'soft' punishment was the slap – so he really shouldn't have been caught off guard by it.

"That is not for you to decide, Squall." Laguna warned, voice dangerously soft. "You're grounded until I can decide whether or not you will be allowed to continue your training. You're a loose cannon, and I won't tolerate your recklessness."

As soon as Laguna left the training room, Squall dropped the wooden weapon in his hand to the floor, his thoughts spinning.

That was how Zell found him, when the blond came looking not five minutes later. Zell wasn't the most astute person he knew, but when it came to Squall, who had been his paramour for years, sensing the other slave's emotions was like a second nature to him. "Don't beat yourself up over what the master says." Zell said by way of greeting.

"Why did you tell him about Cloud?" Squall shot back, his voice betraying his anger. It was rare that Squall showed emotion, but not to Zell. With Zell, emotions were safe, unlike with everyone else.

"Because it wasn't your fault. Master's reasonable; he'd understand that Cloud was the one to blame, not you." Zell explained, as though it made all the sense in the world. Which it did, to him anyway. Not to Squall.

"That wasn't your call to make, Zell." Rather than angry, Squall sounded disappointed now. "I'm tired of these games. He said, she said, pretending to be perfectly content and lying when I'm not. Stay out of my business; I can handle it on my own." He turned to walk away.

"Squall, wait!" Zell reached out to grab his paramour's arm, but the brunet shook him off.

"Don't! Don't touch me." Squall shouted, and before Zell could respond, he was gone, leaving Zell alone in the training room.

To himself, he said, "Stop running away Squall. Eventually, you'll run into a corner and have to face the truth, so why not do it now, where nothing bad will happen?

"_Fear begets anger  
Anger begets hatred  
And hatred begets darkness._

"We don't have to be afraid anymore. Why am I the only one who can see that?"

* * *

Riku had hoped to spend the rest of his day without seeing anyone else, but as per the norm his wishes were not heard by any higher power, and not even an hour after his latest argument with Sara (could they just leave it alone? Riku didn't want to talk about it), Cloud came home and sought Riku out in his room. After last night, Riku was hardly surprised at the fluttering feeling in his chest that Cloud's appearance caused. Cloud's request was simple; he had someone that he wanted Riku to meet, so could Riku please come with him up to Cloud's room?

Of course Riku said yes, but he wasn't expecting the person who greeted him when he set foot into Cloud's room. A familiar face, made unfamiliar by the six years gone since Riku had last seen him. His skin was paler, his once so cocky attitude subdued, somehow, as though part of him was sleeping even while the rest of him was awake.

"Reno."

The redhead glanced up, and his face twisted into a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Riku. Glad to see you're well, yo. How's my brother?"

Riku snorted. For the moment, he forgot about Cloud and merely focused on Reno. "He's fine, no thanks to you."

"Ouch, yo. That's harsh. Where'd the sweet little kid who always begged for stories go?"

"He grew up, like everyone does. Axel grew up too, you know. After Keiss died."

That elicited a reaction from Reno, whose face could not hide his surprise. Keiss was – had been—Reno and Axel's father, a man of a Selkic descent, from whom Reno and Axel got their lithe, agile builds. "When?"

"A few months after you left. A guard beat him to death, I don't remember why. If you'd written like you promised, you would know this." Riku didn't even try to hide his accusations.

Before Reno responded to Riku's statement, he turned his attention to Cloud, who was standing on the edge of their conversation, listening quietly. "Cloud, please, can I speak to Riku alone?"

Cloud nodded, his expression sympathetic. "Of course. I'll be in the media room if you need me." He left without further protest.

As soon as Cloud was gone, Reno plopped down on the floor and buried his head in his hands, any resemblance of composure bleeding away. At such a pathetic sight, Riku's anger began to drain away as well. Keiss had been a good man, a good father, and the realization of the loss had to hurt. "What happened to Axel?"

He looked so pathetic, so despondent seated on the floor there.

_Close my eyes, now I'm blind._

_I can take your derisions,  
you can take all my visions._

_They were children once. Where did that time go? When did they grow up? The tall, slender form of a young man trapped in the awkwardness of adolescence, silhouetted against the door frame as two drops of blood, like red tears leave muddy tracks down a pale face wrenched in an expression of pain. This was childhood's end._

_"Let go of me."_

Riku sat down beside him. "Some of the other Selkies raised him. And us, of course. We stayed with him." He changed the subject. "Why did you never write to us?"

"I couldn't." Reno explained. "When I was sold, I ended up on the black market, yo. It wasn't until a year and a half ago that my current master bought me. By then, I had no idea how to get in contact with Axel again. I could only hope that he wouldn't try to follow my path. The markets make Destiny seem like paradise, yo."

"Axel wanted to follow you. He wanted to find you again." Riku explained. "But he's still in the camps. Only Namine and I made it out."

"Good. That's probably better for him." Abruptly, Reno stood up and redonned his invisible cloak of self assurance. "Be careful, yo. Nobles, they aren't like us, yo. They think in twisted circles, always plotting and scheming. They'll tell you they love you one day, then sell you the next. Don't trust them, yo. Not even Cloud."

Riku stood up, and his anger returned full force. "How can you say that, Reno? You weren't there. You never were. You don't know what it was like for us. You had Keiss and Sephiroth and Angeal looking out for you. Axel, Kairi, Namine, and I? We had just Sephiroth and Angeal, and then Angeal died. I whored for food everyday because I was afraid someone was going to starve to death. Because Axel had no one else to turn to. Because we all dreamed of one day getting out. We dreamed of being free. Of being like you. Now you say it's better for Axel to stay in the camps and die there, without ever hoping to be free?"

"Yes."

A simple answer, but it floored Riku, who could only gape at the red haired slave. He had no words to respond, but thankfully Reno continued for him.

"Riku, promise me you will run away if you ever so much as fear you will be sold to the black market." He closed his eyes, voice raw and his emotions genuine. "I would never wish such a fate on anyone, especially my brother and you. I mean it, yo."

Though Riku knew nothing about the black market, and so wondered why Reno preferred running away (death if you were caught, which was inevitable) over facing whatever awaited there, he didn't ask Reno to explain. Sometimes it was better not to know.

"I promise."

* * *

Reno couldn't stay very long. Apparently his master kept him on a short leash, so Riku wasn't able to speak with him for as long as he would have liked. When Reno left, Riku went back to his room, where Sora was waiting for him. Sora, like Cloud, had been gone most of the day, at a friend's house without his twin brother, so this was the first time Riku had seen him since that morning.

"You back." Riku greeted, remembering only at the last minute that Sora preferred for Riku not to call him by any titles. "How was your visit."

Sora smiled at Riku, a soft one that was different from Cloud's, which always seemed mildly condescending, and different from Reno's, which had been forced. Sora's smile was warm, and lit up his face so easily. "It was fun. Tidus came back from Spira where he was visiting his dad, so we played blitzball for the first time all summer."

Riku had no idea what blitzball was, but he nodded anyway. "Sounds like fun." He said, though he wasn't particularly interested.

Sora shrugged noncommittally. "Hey, do you remember what I said last week? About love?"

In truth, Riku didn't. But when Sora brought it up, he remembered a little bit. Sora had called him beautiful, and that was about all he remembered of the incident. People didn't say that about Riku very often, so when they did, it tended to stick with him. "Yes." He lied.

"I've been thinking about it, and I think I'm in love. I don't know. There's this guy. My heart feels all fluttery when I see him, and even when he's unhappy, I still feel happier just seeing him. But I just met him, so I don't know if I should tell him what I think or not. I'm not sure what to do."

"Tell him." Riku suggested. "If you like someone, you should let them know. It never hurts to try, at least."

"Okay." Sora's smile changed, tinged with mischievousness as he crossed the room so he stood nose to chin with Riku (and he once again bemoaned his own lack of height). "Riku." He announced grandly. "I really like you. I don't even know why, but I do." Then Sora did something completely unexpected; he kissed Riku firmly on the lips.

As far as kisses went, it was pretty awkward. Sora obviously had little experience with this sort of thing, and Riku was unwilling to do more than passively accept, even as a tiny bubble of amused happiness welled up within him. He hadn't expected this, but now he felt silly for being caught off guard.

Sora scared him. Sora was intense, a whirlwind of emotions and actions. Not at all like Riku's own calm rationality. Yet at the same time, Riku did like Sora. The brunet was warm, inviting, and oh so sweet. Innocent and genuine and charming. His mind told him to be careful, but his heart was telling him to trust Sora. So, for once, Riku did what his heart told him to do.

He kissed Sora back.

_

* * *

_

_Dear Riku,_

_First off, happy birthday. I've included a pendant with this letter as your birthday present. It's called a Wayfinder, and it's supposed to work like a papou fruit, so you'll never forget Axel and I. Axel and I made it together with some help from Sephiroth, who told us what plants to use in the dye. It's made from ceramic, so be careful with it or it will break._

_Please don't worry about Axel and I. We are both fine, as are Genesis and Sephiroth. Everyone was very happy to hear from you, so please write often. Tell us about school and the people you meet and the studying you do. We've given all our dreams to you, so keep them safe with you._

_Axel and I moved in together shortly after you left. We've become truly close for the first time, and I feel like I'm getting to know the real him for once. I wonder if this side of him I see is the side of him you always got to see. He's so guarded, despite his playful and mischievous attitude._

_Sephiroth is well. I read your letter out loud to him, and his advice was to keep guard, and don't let your body or your heart rule your decisions. Keep a cool head at all times. I don't know if I agree with that. I think you should trust your heart to lead you in the right direction. Like this Sora who you claim frightens you? In my heart I feel like it's because you're afraid of falling in love._

_Riku. I love you. I love you so much more than words can possibly express. But we will never see each other again. Do not close your heart off to the world. Love freely. I know you can. Do not be afraid._

_I'm afraid I can only write this one page. Zack (he asked me to call him that, so I will), has promised to get me more, but for now this one sheet is all I have. I will give it to Zack and trust that it finds you safe._

_You'll be in my heart always._

_Kairi_

* * *

**Shoutout and References:**

_Keiss was – had been—Reno and Axel's father, a man of a Selkic descent, from whom Reno and Axel got their lithe, agile builds.  
_Keiss is one of the main characters in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers. He's mostly laid back, but his goal of gaining rank in the Lilty army has ostracized him from his fellow Selkies, who deplore the Lilties that have long suppressed them and once massacred them. The Selkies are a race in Crystal Chronicles known for their agility and jumping skills. They have slender, tall builds and are known for being more loose and lawless than the other races (perfect for Reno and Axel!). The Selkies were chased from their ancestral home by the Lilty tribe and made their way to Leuda. In this story, Selkies are a nationality who consider themselves kin to the Al Bhed, but who were conquered by Radiant Garden. To this day, most Selkies are slaves and only a few are members of the common class.

**Next Chapter**: Pictures, secrets, diaries, memories. As Riku tries to move forward with Sora, his past relationship with Kairi and Axel continues to haunt him. Riku finds solace in the most unexpected place: the memories contained within the dead Lady Hikaru's diary.

Reviews, believe it or not, do make writing chapters much easier. So please be nice and feed the author. She really does appreciate it. :)

~Lockea Stone


	7. Damaged

**Important Announcement**: Everyone is going to kill me for this, but SoaHB is going on another hiatus. Why? Because November is National Novel Writing Month and yours truly is not only participating, but is leading a group of fellow NaNo-ers on this grand misadventure. Thus, all my free time will be dedicated to that impossible challenge. Hehe, okay so it's not impossible - I won last year with an original story based sorta on this fanfic. The story was called "Unspoken" and yes, you can read it over at FP. This year I am doing a YA fantasy novel called Memory of Ashes, which I may or may not post.

Anyway! In light of this (and the fact that Chapter Seven is too depressing for December), **I am planning to do a special chapter for this story** just for you guys. BUT! I want some input on it. I'll put the details at the top of my Author Bio (clicky mai name plz). Essentially, I can do either a back story for a character you particularly like, or I can do a pairing story (though only for pairings that have/will take place in this story, so you'd have to ask ahead of time). Pretty much, I will write whatever you want, as long as it fits in with this story. So, for example, if you are burning to know how Sephiroth and Genesis fell in love, for example, I can write that. You know, whatever you guys want. Consider it my apologies for being a flake of an author this year.

**Special thanks**, as always, go out to my wonderful reviewers. Believe it or not, you guys ARE the reason this chapter is 8,000 freakin' words long. **DaystoDawn**, **batcat4eternity**, **Luna Moonsurf**, and **Micro Chibi baka-san** (forever, you are immortalized in my mind as Baka-chan. Sorry about that. :P) I tip my imaginary hat off to you; thank you so much for your support. And also, a special thank you to **Tainted Kattitina**, for beta reading parts of this chapter for me, in order to help censor out some of the inevitable narm.

**AN**: Tainted Kattitina would like me to warn you that** parts of this chapter made her cry. She recommends you have a tissue box nearby**. Actually, while I was writing this chapter, the song "Damaged" by Plumb kept coming up on my playlist and, of course, it's one of my favorite songs, but I really thought it applied to certain scenes in this chapter, especially the scene between Zell and Squall. So, if you want a playlist, I recommend listening to a bunch of Plumb music, especially "Damaged" and "Cut".

* * *

_Dreaming comes so easily  
__'Cause it's all that I've ever know  
__True love is a fairy tale  
__I'm damaged, so how would I know?  
_

_I'm scared and I'm alone  
__I'm ashamed  
__And I need for you to know_

_Healing comes so painfully_  
_And it chills to the bone_  
_Will anyone get close to me?_  
_I'm damaged, as I'm sure you know_

_~Damaged by Plumb_

**Chapter Six: Damaged**

Riku couldn't wait for school to start again on Monday. There was too much drama in the Hikaru household. Sara had, on Sunday, stopped trying to talk Riku out of his strange affair with Cloud, and though Cloud hadn't sought him out again, the blond haired master hadn't bothered to hide his affection for Riku whenever they were alone together. Sora, on the other hand, seemed to actively seek Riku out and so Riku spent most of Sunday learning a new skill; the fine art of video game combat. He was careful to make sure Sora won at least half the time, even though Riku picked up the tricks quickly and could easily have won more often if he wished.

Even so, when he took his usual seat next to Rosa on Monday morning and the girl turned to him and asked, "How was your weekend?" Riku merely shrugged in response.

"Uneventful." He answered, which was kind of true. Chaos, turmoil, strife. Wasn't that just life?

Monday turned out to be an odd day for the members of Squall's peer group, who usually spent the second half of first period in the Slave Affairs office doing what Ms. Trepe had termed "peer development" and what Squall had sarcastically referred to as "group therapy." Mostly, they talked or did homework since there were only seven of them plus Squall.

Monday, however, the group saw to the inclusion of a new, temporary member; a twelve-year-old slave girl who Squall introduced as his surrogate sister, Relm. With Squall and Zell both acting tense and angry (only a fool would be blind enough to miss that the two were currently in the midst of some sort of lover's spat), the introduction of Relm turned out to be an effective way of softening mood.

Riku wasn't terribly interested in interacting with other people at the moment. He was feeling antisocial and tired from the weekend. Relm, however, had a different idea, for no more than two minutes after Riku had settled down and began scribbling away in his journal did Relm appear in front of him, her face uncomfortably close to his as she asked, "Can I draw your portrait?"

Caught off guard, Riku stuttered, "W-why?"

Relm shrugged. "Because I like the way your eyes look. They say eyes are windows to the soul, but yours are cloudy, chaotic. It's interesting."

Not sure whether that was a compliment or not, Riku nodded his consent. It took Relm exactly ten minutes to sketch a rough outline of his face, during which Rosa came up behind Relm to see the sketch. She merely grinned and flashed him a thumbs up, which to Riku meant it could be a really nice looking picture, or Rosa was teasing him. Riku wasn't sure which; he'd never seen Relm's artwork before.

Not even another ten minutes later, Relm grinned victoriously and flipped her sketchbook over to show Riku the finished sketch. There was a remarkable amount of detail for such a short amount of time. No wonder Zell had called her Radiant Garden's next artistic prodigy. She had talent that could have rivaled Namine's.

"I like you." Relm said after she turned the sketchbook back over. "Can I paint a portrait of you for the Greater Radiant Garden Arts Festival?"

Riku shrugged. It didn't bother him, and he saw no reason why she should even ask in the first place. "Do what you want."

Relm grinned devilishly and said in a tone that made Riku mildly nervous, "In that case, hold still. I want to do another portrait."

* * *

While Riku was being corralled by Relm, and Rydia buried her nose deep in some homework she'd put off doing, Rosa took the time to observe the room quietly. Celes and Vaan were talking to each other in low voices, the two having become somewhat friends since they were introduced. Rosa didn't know them very well; Celes had refused invitations of friendship and Vaan was so far withdrawn and unreachable that he hadn't responded to Rosa either. Yet Rosa wasn't about a to give up so easily and was just about to walk over and insert herself into their conversation when the sight of Zexion curled up in the far corner with his knees drawn to his chest and head buried in his arms caught her attention.

Rosa remembered how rude the silver haired slave had been when they'd first met, the way he'd angrily accused Rosa of not knowing anything about him. Which, while true, was no reason to scream at her. Still, Rosa didn't want to make enemies, and she figured now wouldn't be a bad time to try and make amends. So she crossed the room and took a seat in the chair next to Zexion.

For his part, the small silver-haired man barely glanced up, one green eye glaring at her from over the protective shell of his arms. The blond haired healer was unfazed. "Didn't get enough sleep last night?" She questioned, trying to sound open and inviting.

"No." Zexion snapped, but even that felt weak compared to the burst of anger from before. "Not that it's any of your business."

Rosa shrugged. "So it's not, but I do care anyway. Lack of sleep affects your mental capabilities, and it would be a shame if you got sick because of it."

"Shut up." Zexion responded, but he buried his head back in his arms so his words came out muffled and lacking in bite. "It's not like it's your problem if my grades slip or something stupid like that."

Well, no, but… "Still, I'd like to be friends, and friends look out for each other."

Zexion sighed, but when he answered he didn't sound angry, just tired. "Go away Rosa. I don't want to be friends with you."

Rosa sighed. For some reason that, more than the anger, convinced her to leave him alone. "Okay," She conceded, "But my offer still stands."

From the silence that greeted her, Rosa knew he'd never take her up on that offer. It wasn't in Zexion's nature.

* * *

In between Composition and Calculus, the class took an hour long break for lunch every day. While the other slaves walked across campus to the dining hall, Zell chose to stay behind, hoping to corner Squall into speaking with him. Even though the two paramours lived together, Squall had ways of avoided people if he honestly didn't want to see them, and lately Zell had been on Squall's list of people to be avoided.

So, if Squall was just going to avoid him, then Zell was going to have to take drastic measures to keep Squall from avoiding him.

Zell was able to catch Squall in his office and stood in the doorway with his arms crossed. If Squall really wanted to, he could have pushed the younger slave aside, but he didn't, so Zell assumed Squall was finally willing to talk to him.

"What do you want, Zell?" Squall demanded wearily when he glanced up and saw his paramour standing there.

"To talk about what you've been avoiding."

Squall quirked one eyebrow. "And that is?"

"The real reason you didn't tell Master about Cloud. You might be able to feed your bullshit excuses to the others, but we've known each other since I was ten. I know you better than that."

"Do you? Then why didn't I tell Master about Cloud?"

Zell rolled his eyes. Squall sounded like a petulant child. "Because you're ashamed."

Squall's expressions were normally unreadable to anyone who didn't know him very well, but Zell knew him better than anyone else in the world, so he noticed when Squall's face went completely blank as they older slave froze.

"See! That's what I mean." Zell added quickly, gesturing toward Squall. "I so much as mention it and you close up. When have you ever bothered to face the truth? What makes you think it's okay to carry on like this? You won't tell Master because you want to please him and you think he'll think you're weak because you get so upset over such 'minor details'." The way Zell said those last two words implied that they were anything but. "Sex scares you, but you won't do anything about it and, I hate to say it, it's driving us apart."

"Because I won't sleep with you?" Squall's voice was quiet, distant.

"Yes! Oh Hyne, you won't even hold me some days. If touch scares you so much than why are we even paramours? Maybe we should dissolve our bond."

For the briefest moment, Zell saw fear flash across Squall's face. He felt guilty for doing it, but if threatening Squall was what it took to get him to open up, then Zell was willing to do so. It was for his own good. But Zell didn't expect Squall to do what he did next.

The taller slave crossed the room in a few long strides and knelt down in front of Zell, reaching up with one hand to release the buckle on Zell's pants. "If it's sex you want then I'll give it to you." Squall muttered, just barely loud enough for Zell to hear.

Even though the office was closed off and they were unlikely to be walked in on, it wasn't Zell's fetish to have sex in a public place and certainly not with someone acting under coercion. Such a thing left a bad taste in Zell's mouth. He wasn't a _noble_ after all, to take from the unwilling without regards for them, even if it was his paramour.

Squall's hands were shaking when Zell gently took them in his own. Squall was so much taller than Zell, and it showed even in his hands, which were bigger than Zell's own. Carefully, Zell got down on his knees as well kissed Squall deeply, even as he wrapped his arms around him, as though Squall would disappear if he didn't hold on tightly.

"It's not sex I want." Zell explained carefully when they parted. "Though it would be nice, sometimes, you know." He added jokingly before returning to a more serious tone. "I'm scared, Squall. I thought things would be better now that we're out of that camp, but you've been getting worse. What if Master decides you're too broken to train? What if he sells you? Squall, we have to face this. It's not going to go away. It's not going to heal with time alone."

"I know." Squall answered, for once his voice betraying the full range of his emotions, hoarse and scared and full of pain. "I'll do what you want. I'll try to be a better paramour. Just promise me you won't leave me."

It broke Zell's heart, and went against all his morals, to use such an underhanded tactic as blackmail in order to get Squall to face the fears he'd been running away from for so long. But at the same time, Squall's abrasive personality, coupled with his crippling fear of being alone, were driving Squall to madness, and as a paramour, Zell couldn't possibly stand by and watch it happen.

So he let Squall believe that he would leave him if Squall didn't change, even though nothing could have been further from the truth.

* * *

Two years ago, back when Zackary Fair had been a naïve newbie guardsman fresh from the military and completely inexperienced with slaves of any sort, every part of the labor camps had shocked and repulsed him. Now, as he cut down a crying, bleeding teenage slave from Destiny Island Labor Camp's whipping post and held her red hair back from her face as she vomited onto the sandy soil nearby, he could only feel a world-weary sympathy for her, but not any sort of surprise or outrage.

If he was disappointed in his own complacency, then Zack refused to acknowledge it. Hadn't he joined the military to become a hero? And he thought he'd succeeded, too, but now he'd become a villain instead. It was better not to think about it.

"Thank you, Zack." She told him as she pulled away, managing a small smile towards him. She wiped away the tears on her face nonchalantly and slipped her purple spaghetti-strap top back over her head and started to walk away without another word.

"Kairi, wait!" Zack wasn't sure what possessed him to call after her. Maybe concern because, from what he knew, this wasn't the first time Kairi had been violently ill. He didn't know the slave well, and as a general rule of thumb he didn't get involved with any of the slaves, but Riku had been an exception. The whore should have disgusted and repulsed Zack, but for some reason something about him – his courage, or his love, or possibly his determination and strong belief in something better than life in the camp – had attracted Zack to him. So when Riku left, of course Zack had agreed to keep an eye out for his two beloved paramours.

Whatever the reason, Kairi paused and turned around, looking more confused and curious than obedient. Which Zack found strange, because disobedience had been the reason he was forced to string her up and whip her in the first place.

"You're going to see Sephiroth, right?"

Kairi nodded, her expression clearly stating that this was obvious. Which it was, because all slaves had to see a healer after a formal punishment. It was the law.

"I'll come with you. I'm concerned about how sick you've been lately. I want to make sure Sephiroth checks that out." It was a little unusual, yes, for a guard to walk through the residential area (if one could call the hastily erected shacks residences), most guards didn't unless they were making routine rounds. There really was no reason to leave the guard house, which had this wonderful invention called air conditioning, unless it was necessary. Still, Zack didn't think it was _that_ unusual.

From the way Kairi just stared at him, apparently it was, but then the girl shrugged and turned away, gesturing for Zack to follow her down the path to where Sephiroth lived. Zack knew, vaguely, the location of Sephiroth's shack, having been there once or twice before, but the divergent forest paths were easy to get lost on. Sephiroth lived at the ocean's edge of the camp, furthest away from the guardhouse, and it took ten minutes of walking to reach there.

The man in question was inside. On alternative days, Sephiroth worked in the orchards with everyone else, but on others he stayed behind to attend to the typical duties of a healer, which mostly boiled down to tending the herb garden his mother, the previous healer, had begun and making natural remedies. The silver haired man was outside, carefully at work, and as Kairi and Zack approached he rose from his position in kneeling in the sandy soil.

There was no more to the way Kairi and Sephiroth greeted each other than a small nod of acknowledgement of the other's presence, and Zack had no way to tell if this was because of his presence, or because the two were so accustomed to each other that they had no need of more. All it took was one look at Kairi's tear stained face and the spots of blood dotting the back of her shirt before Sephiroth nodded and gestured for the girl to follow him into the shack, ignoring Zack completely.

Zack didn't mind, since this allowed him to go unnoticed as he stood in the doorway and watched as Kairi took a seat on one of the cots in one corner of the shack. It was a dim, small place, this poorly constructed shelter, containing only enough space for a workbench against the far wall, two cots near the hearth, and a stack of neatly folded bedding in another corner where Sephiroth slept. Bundles of herbs hung drying from the rafters, the tips on equal level with Zack's eyes.

"What was the charge?" Sephiroth questioned, speaking to the red haired girl as she unselfconsciously stripped her shirt off, the shiny welts catching in the faint light through the lone window against the far wall. Very few had cracked open and were bleeding, and very few crossed each other. Though Zack had never felt the crack of a whip himself, he knew enough about them to know that either situation brought about increased pain. It was little consolation, however, considering the myriad of white and red scars distorting the girl's natural skin tone.

"I dunno. Looked at a guard funny and he ordered me back to the camps for a formal punishment. Disobedience, I guess."

"I'm not surprised." Sephiroth's voice carried no emotions. It wasn't apathetic, but rather merely dry, as though Sephiroth cared, but not enough to put that care into his tone of voice.

"You should be. I'm a perfect angel, you know." Kairi snipped back. "It's the guards. They're all jealous of how popular I am. Everyone likes me best!"

For a moment, a ghost of a smile crossed Sephiroth's face before it vanished beneath his expressionless mask. It occurred to Zack that the two brothers, Riku and Sephiroth, had a lot more in common than he initially thought. Though Riku wasn't nearly as recalcitrant as Sephiroth, he was just as good at hiding his emotions.

"Defiant and arrogant. You're two for two today." Sephiroth said, as he applied a green colored paste to Kairi's back. From the way the girl sighed in content, it was apparently some sort of pain reliever. Once the salve had been worked into the girl's back, Sephiroth closes the jar from which it came and turned his attention towards Zack, as though noticing him for the first time.

A tense sort of silence followed as the two men stared each other down. From what Zack understood of the stories he'd coaxed out of Riku, Sephiroth was just over nine years older than Riku, which meant he was three years older than Zack. Their parents had died when Riku was seven, and a then-sixteen-year-old Sephiroth had left school to become the full time caregiver for his younger brother. Finally, Sephiroth said, "Can I help you, sir?" Though the words were respectful, the barely masked contempt beneath his voice clearly informed Zack that he was not welcome here.

It did occur to Zack that Sephiroth might not even know his name; let alone what he looked like. It was, after all, entirely possible that Riku and Kairi had never spoken of him to the stoic healer.

Zack held his ground as Kairi came to his rescue by speaking up in his defense. "Oh, Sephiroth, that's Zack. He's the guard I get your medicine from." Her voice held a warning in it.

"I'm worried about Kairi." Zack explained by way of greeting. "She's thrown up at least twice in the last two days. Since I know she'd never tell me if she was sick, I want you to tell me instead."

If Sephiroth heard Zack, then he ignored him as he turned to Kairi. The girl had her arms crossed over her chest. She hadn't bothered with a shirt, so the act was more likely an act of modesty than of stubbornness. "It's probably nothing. Zack worries too much."

"When did it start?" Sephiroth asked, his tone disapproving.

"Last week. It's only when I'm stressed, or sometimes when I first wake up." Kairi explained. "It's been a stressful couple of weeks. I'm sure that's all."

Sephiroth shook his head. "And yet you accuse me of hiding my sicknesses. It could be anything Kairi, and Axel would be devastated if you got sick." That seemed to work, as Kairi's face sunk and she looked apologetic for the first time all day. The girl had a stubborn streak a mile wide, but she did genuinely care about her friends and paramour. "Are there any other symptoms? Rashes, weird cravings, nausea and vertigo?"

"No, nothing, not unless you count the fact that I had a craving for salted fish yesterday. Axel went and got some from La Runa when I mentioned it." But even as she said this, Kairi looked perplexed. "You don't think…?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Let me do an examination to make sure before we jump to any conclusions."

Confused, Zack interjected, "What conclusions? What's wrong with Kairi?"

The white haired slave barely spared him a glance. "Guardsman Fair, I ask that you leave while I conduct a physical examination. I have reason to believe that Kairi may be pregnant."

Stunned, Zack complied, stepping back outside into the bright afternoon sun. It was humid on the island, but the trees offered shade over the houses and in the quiet Zack could hear the waves crashing against the nearby beach. Gods! Pregnant? Zack hadn't even considered it. Kairi was so small, so emaciated, that if she weighed even thirty five kilograms then Zack would be amazed. He hadn't thought a girl that small and underweight could even get pregnant, let alone avoid an early miscarriage. So he was still shocked when Sephiroth came to the doorway and, in his usual cold tone, informed him that his suspicions were confirmed. The girl was two months pregnant.

Kairi followed Sephiroth out, fully dressed and perfectly calm, her face betraying no emotions. Zack couldn't restrain himself and asked right away, "Who is the father?" In retrospect, he doubted the girl even knew. She'd had two male paramours, and either was an equal possibility.

Instead, the girl flushed, and appeared on the verge of tears, but her voice was steady as she spoke. "Riku. Axel and I… Until a few days ago we'd never actually been together like that. He's not exactly the 'hold me' type, you know."

Sephiroth nodded as if he'd expected this and spoke practically. "It can't be helped. Claim Axel as the father nonetheless. There's no point in acting otherwise."

Zack didn't see things the same way as the two slaves so obviously did. "Wait. Shouldn't you tell Riku? It's not fair to keep it a secret from him."

From the way Kairi and Sephiroth just stared at him, you'd have thought he'd proposed something impossible. It was Sephiroth who explained. "Riku is not here, nor will he ever be back. Axel is here, and Axel is Kairi's paramour. If something happens to a slave's mother before he reaches the age of majority, only a blood relative can protect him. By declaring Riku the father, Kairi would deny her child protection if something should happen to her."

"Okay, I get that, but at least let him know. Doesn't he deserve that much at least?"

Kairi looked down, bit her lip, and thought for a moment before she said, "Yes, but I don't want to worry him. He shouldn't have to be tied here, not by something unfortunate. I promised myself that I wouldn't tell him anything that would cause him to worry, and I know this will."

"Still, If I were the father, I'd want to know. I wouldn't want my loved one to keep it a secret, even if it was to protect me. Please promise me you'll tell him. I might even be able to arrange a phone call, so you can tell him in person, instead of through a letter." Zack tried to convince her, but the girl still looked doubtful and reluctant. "Please, Kairi, you know Riku better than anyone else. You know he'd want to know."

It was only reluctantly that Kairi finally agreed.

* * *

It took some searching to pull up the data for Riku's new master. Since he was no longer property of Destiny Agriculture, he'd been purged from the systems. So Zack had to pull up the national database and track from there. Luckily, Riku's master had kept his records public, so it wasn't hard to grab the contact number for his new handler.

Zack and Kairi had agreed to wait until afternoon of the day after they'd discovered Kairi was pregnant, both to give Kairi some time to decide what to say and to give Zack some time to find Riku's files. It was risky and, actually, very probably illegal, but Zack was willing to take this risk for them, if only because he couldn't stand the thought of being the one in Riku's shoes.

They met, quietly, behind the guardhouse and didn't say anything in greeting, though Zack reached out and gently squeezed her shoulder in reassurance, careful not to brush against still-fresh welts. They didn't have time to linger, so without a word Zack pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number for Riku's handler.

After seven rings, someone picked up and a female voice on the other end of the phone answered, _"Hikaru residence, this Sara Altney speaking. How may I help you?"_

Zack closed his eyes and explained, without going into too many details, the situation, stating he had some news for Riku which couldn't be shared via a letter. Finally, reluctantly, the woman agreed to allow Riku to speak with him, and moments later Zack heard a familiar voice greet him. "_Hello?"_

"Riku, kiddo, it's Zack."

"_Zack? Guardsman Fair? Why are you calling?"_

"Riku, there's something Kairi needs to tell you, and it's not something that should be written in a letter. You should hear the news straight from her." With that, Zack passed the cell phone over to Kairi, who held it to her ear with shaking hands.

"Riku?"

"_Kairi! Kairi, what's wrong? What was Fair talking about? Did something happen to Axel? Is Sephiroth all right? Are you all right?"_

Kairi laughed softly, and for a moment all her anxiety drained away."Riku, stop talking for a moment so I can say something." She admonished gently.

"_Sorry."_ Riku apologized sheepishly.

"Oh Riku, Zack never said it was bad news I had to tell you. It's just… not good news either."

"_What is it?"_

Kairi took a deep breath and said, "I'm two months pregnant. We're not sure of the exact timing, but I think it probably happened just after we took the SIAT."

Silence on the other end. Kairi wished she could see Riku's face, so she could know what emotions must be stirring beneath that mask of his which hid so much. No one could read Riku like she could, except maybe Axel.

"_I see._" The words were soft, carrying no emotion; no joy at the news, nor sorrow at the loss, nor regret that they both new this child would never know his father. _"The child is Axel's, for the sake of us all. I'm so sorry."_

"Don't! Don't apologize, Riku. I'm not sorry, so why should you be? These things happen. Wasn't it you who said that a birth is a happy accident and life a journey to be taken, step by step in stride with our hopes and dreams? I still remember that, you know. I remember a lot of things you've said."

"_I know, Kairi. But I'm still sorry it had to be this way. I want you to know that, no matter what, I will never stop loving you. Goodbye."_

With that, the sound of a click and a dial tone informed Kairi that the person on the other line was no longer there. With a sob, she sank to her knees and buried her face in her hands.

Zack knelt down next to her and gently wrapped the girl in his arms while she cried. He knew that he shouldn't care so much about a slave, about someone whose life held only as much worth as the bond debt which chained them. Yet Kairi was only a girl, only a scared seventeen year old who just found out she was pregnant with the child of a man she loved, but who she would never see again. Slave or not, it hurt Zack to watch her suffer.

Perhaps it was his weakness, but against all reason Zackary Fair cared.

* * *

Riku set the phone on the kitchen table with a sigh and ignored the stares he was receiving from Sora and Sara. He and Sora had been in the kitchen where Sora was helping Sara frost cupcakes and Riku was working on his Calculus homework when Sara had picked up the phone.

Now, Sara merely asked, "What was that about?"

"Nothing, really." Riku lied. "Kairi, my former paramour, called to tell me she was pregnant with my other paramour's child." He stood up abruptly and flipped his text book closed, gathering up his notes and homework from where it had become strewn across the table. "I'm not feeling well. May I be excused?"

Sara nodded, concern apparent on her face, as well as certain disbelief. If she knew Riku was lying, then she said nothing of it. "Go ahead. I'll call you for dinner."

Riku nodded, gave a slight bow, and left.

Riku needed to find somewhere where he could be alone for a while, to process what Kairi had told him. He couldn't go to his room; he never seemed to get any privacy there. So instead he decided that there had to a guest room or something in the back of the house that no one ever used. He'd duck in there and sort out his thoughts.

The room he found was at the back of the house, on the ground floor. He knew it was unused because when he stepped inside he noticed the layer of dust which coated everything. Strange, because Sara was very meticulous about keeping the mansion clean. Still, it meant no one was likely to come barging in. It was an office of some sort, with books on energy, heat, physics, and thermodynamics filling the bookcases that lined the walls. A large desk made up the focal point of the room, and several pictures in frames peered up from the edges of the desk and shelves.

Riku picked up one of the picture frames and blew the dust from the glass to see a photo of a smiling woman holding a baby in her arms. Beside her was a man who could only be the Director, though his hair was much longer and darker, and his clothes more casual. The woman had to be his wife, Lady Chelinka, and the baby must have been Cloud.

The other pictures were much the same. Chelinka as a little girl, riding piggy back on another boy with brown hair (hadn't Cloud mentioned that Chelinka had a brother?); Cloud, Roxas, and Sora as children, swimming in a lake; two brunet haired young adults, a man and a woman, dressed in lab coats and smiling over what looked to Riku like a very complex control panel. They had to Palom and Porom. Sara and Ingus, appearing about fifteen years old, asleep under the tree in the back yard, curled up in each other's arms, Ingus's slave collar gleaming silver against his neck. There were pictures of people Riku didn't recognize.

It dawned on him that this had to be Lady Chelinka's office. Curious to know more about the woman whose memory haunted this household and desperate to ignore the news from Kairi, Riku decided to investigate a bit. If his suspicions were correct, no one ever came in here anymore, so no one would know that he had been in here. It took him a while, but he finally found what he was looking in the bottom of one of the desk drawers. A journal, bound in black leather and gold ribbon, the pages heavy and textured. Riku flipped it open to the beginning and began to read.

_Dear diary,_

_Today is Yuri's and mine's eighteenth birthday, which means we're now officially adults. To celebrate, father bought Yuri and I each our first slave. Yuri's slave is named Freya, and she's very pretty but her demeanor is somewhat harsh. My slave is very beautiful, and has perfect manners, so I know he was well trained. His name is Lazard, but that's all I know of him at the moment. That and his age. A few months shy of sixteen, but he's a helot so he's already an adult. _

_Father threw a very large party for us this evening, during which a good deal many of my friends wished me a happy birthday, including a very cute classmate of mine who I have been seeing off and on. It's too soon to think about marriage, but he's certainly a valuable ally and a wonderful friend. Yes, first and foremost I must marry for the sake of my family and our status. Which is terrible, but wouldn't be so terrible if I love the person I should marry._

_This diary is a gift from Shara Altney, the head of our staff. She told me that all young women need a book in which they can write their innermost secrets. I don't have any secrets, not really, but maybe I will someday. Until then, I suppose this book shall be for all the things I want to remember years from now, when I'm old and gray and losing my mind, surrounded by grandchildren. I imagine there will be a lot I want to remember then._

The entry was dated almost thirty years prior, when Chelinka had been the same age Riku was now. Riku tried to imagine how carefree Chelinka's life must have been back then. He couldn't imagine a life without secrets, where your only concern was loving the person you were supposed to marry. Not that Chelinka's life sounded ideal, but at this point it sounded preferable to Riku's.

Riku flipped forward a few years, skimming the entries as he went. Chelinka narrated parties and conversations, speaking often of her slave whom she affectionately nicknamed Silk in her diary, because of his hair. She also talked about her studies, and her theories about heat engines, which Riku read over with some interest.

_In class we discussed entropy and energy loss. We discussed a theoretical but ultimately impractical device known as a heat engine. It operates because heat travels from a high temperature source to a low temperature source. Thus, the efficiency of a heat engine relies on the two temperatures. Unfortunately, this is what makes it ultimately useless, as only extreme temperatures would make a heat engine practical. Though, I wonder… Airships operate in extremely cold conditions, so I wonder if a heat engine on an airship would be viable. I shall have to calculate to be sure._

_I explained all this to Silk today, but of course we had to stop when I started discussing the entropy of the system, since he didn't know what entropy was. So I explained it to him like this; if you drop something, it will break. If you keep dropping it, it will never fall in such a way that it becomes unbroken. In fact, it will break more. Entropy travels in one direction, and measures disorder in a system. Because heat travels in one direction as well, entropy is used to measure the… hmmm… not efficiency but the order, I guess, of the energy transfer. How much energy is lost? How disordered do things become?_

_Silk thought about it for a while (he's very bright. Ever since I taught him to read he's been gobbling up my old books, though his favorites seem to be the ones on politics and business), and finally said, "So, it's kind of like life. As we get older our lives become more complex and disordered."_

_I hadn't thought about applying entropy to life before._

Funny, neither had Riku. Now that he thought about it, though, his life seemed to be following an entropic path. Heh. The world explained in an esoteric physics concept. Who would have thought? He flipped forward a bit and read a chapter that dated back twenty six years.

_Freya gave birth finally. A baby boy, healthy and very loud. She asked if she could name him Ingus, after my grandfather, and of course Yuri said yes. He's just as infatuated with her as I am with Silk. We all breathed a sigh of relief that the pregnancy and birth were uncomplicated, and now we just have to wait another three months for Shara's baby to arrive. Children sound like a nice addition to this household. I'd like to have one of my own, but I'm too busy studying right now. Maybe in a few years._

Ingus was three years older than Cloud, Riku knew that, so he skipped ahead three years. He was curious if Chelinka would write anything about Cloud's father. He found an entry from shortly after Cloud was born, and had to laugh out loud at it's opening line.

_I take back everything I ever said about wanting to have a child; I did not sign up for long sleepless nights where Cloud wakes me up every hour with one crisis or another. I wanted a cute baby who wouldn't cry or scream or fuss. Thankfully, my beautiful husband doesn't mind handling everything but feeding time, so I can still focus on my research. Deusericus has been a great help to me, and he absolutely adores Cloud. He's also really good with Ingus and Sara. I hope the three of them will grow up to be friends in the same way that Deusericus is friends with Shara and Freya. _

_You know, I keep telling Deusericus that there will be no more children after this, but I kind of think it wouldn't be so bad to have a few more. Especially if Deusericus changes their diapers for me! When I hold Cloud, though, a part of me just lights up inside. I love him so much that I would give up the world just for Cloud's happiness. I guess now I know what it means to be a mother. I never thought it'd be like this._

Riku slammed the diary shut and buried his face in his hands. Dammit! Why did he have to get so curious? Chelinka speaking of holding the infant Cloud in her arms reminded him of everything he'd been trying not to think of.

If he were to be completely honest with himself, no lies or half hearted truths, then Riku would acknowledge the burning regret deep within him. He _was_ angry. He _was_ hurt. And the whole world just _wasn't_ fair! He'd never truly wanted to leave Destiny, especially not if he'd have known that Kairi was pregnant. But at the same time there was a part of Riku that burned with anger at his own helplessness, at the truth of being a slave. He'd buried it, yes, because to let it burn would mean letting it consume him, which would have done nothing productive and would only have served to drive him to insanity sooner.

So he'd worked hard, so he'd sacrificed pieces of himself, he'd sacrificed his family and his friends, and Riku had dreamed of one day leaving the camps. But just a few months ago, that had been the end of Riku's meticulous planning. Everything in his life had revolved around passing the SIAT and getting bought out of Destiny. He'd never thought about what would happen, never thought about how much it would hurt to leave it all behind.

He'd never thought he'd leave a _family_ behind.

Suddenly he hated Chelinka. He hated her carefree life, hated that her biggest concern in life seemed to revolve around either her damn research or being kept up at night by her children.

Riku remembered Sara, standing in the kitchen just a few days earlier, fretting over needing to ask the Director for permission to have a child. The nobles controlled everything, it seemed, and even the so-called free commoners were little more than serfs beneath an oppressive master_. "You'll never hear a noble debate whether they have enough money for a family." _Sara had said, as though it were nothing more than an unfortunate truth. At least pregnant slaves had Helotian Law, which protected them and their child from harm, and made it illegal for them to be sold or killed during pregnancy, so Kairi didn't have to fear for her life. Yet commoners were on their own. It was one of those very rare situations where Radiant Garden's classism benefitted the lowest class.

Yet that didn't change the fact that Riku would never know his child, and that truly was all Radiant Garden's fault.

"_Must I forget you? Our solemn promise?"_ Riku sang the words without realizing it, the noise in the quiet startling. It'd been so long since Riku last remembered the story, and yet it summoned in him a firestorm of memories. Memories of the person who'd first taught Riku these old tales, and who'd started his interest in poetry in the first place.

In this story, a woman's lover went away to war. She stayed behind, and her castle was invaded and overtaken by the enemy. Because she was so beautiful, the enemy's leader decided to make her his wife. She longed, and hoped, and prayed for her beloved to come back, but finally she learned that he had died, and thus she resigned herself to her fate with a song. The Aria di Mezzo Carattere had once been called the greatest song ever written, but it had been through his father that Riku had first learned to sing it.

" _Will autumn take the place of spring? What shall I do? I'm lost without you. Speak to me once more!"_

So asked the woman in the song, and yet as Riku closed his eyes he knew that the question came too late for himself. Autumn had already replaced spring, and Riku would have to forget sooner rather than later. Forget, or risk being trapped unable to move.

He let himself drift off to sleep to the memory of the song, the memory of the man who'd taught him how to sing it, and the memory of what it all ultimately meant.

* * *

_In his dream, night was falling over Destiny Islands and Riku, who couldn't have been more than eight, was seated in his father's lap as a fire burned merrily in the clearing in front of their home. His mother was inside the shack they called home, dealing with a patient who had come in search of her services, and his father was making some sort of soup for their dinner. Riku was tired, though, and was more interested in staring up at the stars. Eventually, his father noticed and looked up as well._

"_There's Draco." He remarked. Pointing up at a constellation just off to the side of the sky. "There's a story about Draco, and then there's a story about a man named Draco."_

"_What story about a man?" Riku asked, curious. His father was a quiet man, more likely to keep his thoughts inside than speak them out loud, but he also had a way with words, a way to spin a tale of love and heartbreak, hope and redemption, that his listeners were blessed with a few hours in which the whole of their world came down to a captivating story._

_For a few minutes, his father says nothing and Riku thinks that maybe he won't be able to coax a story from his father tonight. But finally, the man glances back at the fire and starts to speak, his voice soft and melodious._

"_Between East and West a war does rage. Each battle long, each victory pyrrhic, and each night both sides recall the loved ones left behind. The West's great hero is Draco, who holds the princess, Maria, in his heart, as she holds him. By night he dreams of her, by day he raises his blade. And with every battle, he prays one day to return to her side. One day, however, Draco leads his men into battle and falls._

"_To Maria, the news is returned, that her beloved Draco is dead. But before grief can take its course, the East invades, and Maria's castle falls. With her boundless beauty and her power over people's hearts, Maria finds her hand forced into marriage with the East's leader, Ralse. But each night, as Maria looks at the stars, her heart longs for the one who went away. To him, each night, she sings."_

_In a rich baritone, not at all a female voice but still beautiful and captivating, Riku's father begins to sing. "Oh my hero, so far away now. Will I ever see your smile? Love goes away, like night into day. It's just a fading dream. I'm the darkness, you're the starlight, shining brightly from afar. Through hours of despair, I offer this prayer to you, my evening star. Must I forget you? Our solemn promise? Will autumn take the place of spring? What shall I do? I'm lost without you. Speak to me once more!"_

_As the song fades away into the night air, Riku turns his gaze back up to the stars. He thinks for a moment, and then asks his father, "Why didn't Maria go after Draco? Why did she stay to marry Ralse if she really loved Draco?"_

_His father laughs, but it's a sound that doesn't carry emotion in it. "She couldn't." He explains. "Maria didn't have the freedom to come and go as she pleased. All she could do was wait and pray that it would turn out all right in the end, so that's what she did."_

_Again, Riku thought about the story. Though very young, Riku was nothing if not perceptive, so he said, "Is that why you didn't stop the guards from hurting Sephiroth? Because you're like Maria?"_

_Anger flashed across his father's face, and for a few brief moments Riku thought he was angry with him. Yet just as suddenly, the anger disappeared, replaced with an emotion the eight-year-old Riku didn't recognize, but the eighteen-year-old Riku did._

_At that age, Riku had no idea what happened to slaves when they turned fourteen. He knew that they became adults by law, and that they took paramours. He also knew that the day before Sephiroth's birthday, his older brother had spent the night with a young man named Angeal, who Riku only knew as the slave who helped his mother care for the plants in her herb garden. Then, on Sephiroth's birthday, he'd come home around noon with his clothing torn, body covered in cuts and bruises, his long silver hair tangled and dirty. All anyone ever told Riku was that the guards had done it. But the most shocking part, to Riku, was the stranger his brother had become. Gone was the affectionate boy who played with him, replaced instead by a solemn and silent young man who rejected even his mother's hugs._

_At that age, Riku knew none of this, and he wouldn't learn until his best friend Axel turned fourteen and Riku helped Sephiroth treat the tear-drop shaped cuts beneath Axel's eyes. But even so, Riku wouldn't understand until his own fourteenth birthday, and he experienced firsthand the violence that had become so normalized in the camps._

_Now, however, in this memory he was only eight, and knew none of this. So his father merely sighed and hugged him closer, as though the act alone could shield Riku from the painful truth of his own perceptions. _

"_We don't have the freedom make choices, Riku." His father explained, "We don't let ourselves grieve or feel weakness. We're the strong ones. We have to be."_

_There was always something unexplained about his father, some loss, some grief, some sorrow that made his too-thin shoulders sink under the weight of the world. Even before Sephiroth turned fourteen, that weight had been there, and only now, in this dream memory of him, did Riku think maybe he was beginning to understand what it was. Regret. Anger. Shame. One of those, or maybe all._

"_Maria was strong in her own way." His father went on to explain. "Strength isn't a sword in battle; it's a state of mind. It's the will to not crumble when you're helpless, to not give in when you're afraid. There is nothing your mother or I could have done for Sephiroth. Like Maria, we can't trade places, or make choices, or decide the fate of our lives. But remember this, Riku, this lack of freedom doesn't make you weak. Don't ever believe that it does. We're the strong ones."_

_As a child, Riku hadn't understood. But now he did. Chelinka didn't have to be strong, because she was a noble. Kairi and Riku did, because they were slaves. _

_They had to be strong._

_They didn't have a choice._

_

* * *

_

**_Bonus Points: _**

_*Cough* Can we just skip for this chapter? You should know who everyone is by now. No? Okay..._

___Yuri's slave is named Freya, and she's very pretty but her demeanor is somewhat harsh._

Freya is a character from Final Fantasy IX. She's a fierce warrior, but she has a gentle heart. In this story, sometimes I end up picking characters arbitrarily, which is what happened with Freya and Shara here. I chose Freya because her costume looks similar to the Red Mage costume, and Ingus is often shown as a Red Mage. Freya was Ingus's mother, and was Yuri's personal slave before she passed away when Ingus was young.

_This diary is a gift from Shara Altney, the head of our staff. _

Shara is a character from Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, and is actually another arbitrary choice. Originally, I was going to have her be Ingus's mother (because she actually is a Red Mage class), but then I decided that Freya's personality more closely aligned with Ingus's. Anyway, in the story Shara is Sara's mother, and essentially held Sara's job before Sara took over as an adult. Shara retired a few years prior, and lives quietly in the countryside.

_Deusericus has been a great help to me, and he absolutely adores Cloud._

Deusericus is the Director. ^^; And yes, he does actually adore children. There has to be some soft spot underneath his grumpy demeanor. In case it's been bothering you, Deusericus focused on raising the children while his wife headed the research lab as the Director, and in the process ended up raising Ingus and Sara as well. He treats both his servants like his children, and does actually hold a secret affection for them, even if he does try to act gruff and grumpy towards them. This is why Sara has a lot of freedom to be the real secret queen of the Hikaru household. (It'll probably come up later, but yes, he does give Sara and Ingus a raise so they can have a child. The whole point is that Sara even has to ask in the first place.)

_His father was a quiet man, more likely to keep his thoughts inside than speak them out loud._

Riku and Sephiroth's parents are Vincent and Lucrecia from Final Fantasy VII. This is because, canonically, Sephiroth's parents are Lucrecia and Hojo, but many fans prefer to believe that Vincent is Sephiroth's father, both because it's more tragically romantic and because Sephiroth bears a striking resemblance to Vincent. (If you've never seen a picture of Vincent, go google one now.) In the game, Lucrecia is a scientist who becomes involved in the Jenova Project, and allows her unborn child to become the subject of experiments involving Jenova cells. Vincent is the Turk assigned to watch over Lucrecia. He is also an optional player in the original game. His dialog goes like this: "Blah blah, atone for my sins blah." Anyway, in this story, Lucrecia was a healer working for Kadowaki Medical Center and stationed in Destiny where she met and fell in love with Vincent. Both passed away of illness when Sephiroth was sixteen (Riku was nine), leaving Sephiroth to raise his brother alone.

_Between East and West a war does rage._

The story is called "Draco and Maria", though in this fic it's called "Darkness and Starlight", and it's the opera from Final Fantasy VI. "Darkness and Starlight" is a recurring theme in this story, as Riku (and sometimes other characters), relate the helpless role of Maria to slavery. It also parallels the relationship between Sora and Riku in this story. If you've read the alternative prologue on LJ, you'd know that Riku references the story in his rant to Cid, in which he states that in real life, Draco would be dead and Maria would be a bitter old woman with no control over her life. Anyway, full versions, cut scenes, and lyrics can be found on the web if you're interested.

_...a young man named Angeal, who Riku only knew as the slave who helped his mother care for the plants in her herb garden_

Ah, Angeal. He's another character from the FFVII Complication. In the game, he's technically Genesis's half brother (shh... don't tell the fangirls), as well as best friends with Sephiroth and Genesis. Angeal is known for his love of plants, and spends a lot of free time gardening. In this story, that's how he and Sephiroth met, and because Angeal is a few years older than Sephiroth, he became Sephiroth's first paramour. Angeal died two years prior to the story.

**Next time**: Uh... hopefully the bonus chapter, yeah! Send in you're requests using whichever method works best for you (bugging me on LJ, reviewing, emailing me, whatever works!)

If you haven't figured out by now that I pretty much worship my reviewers, then I suggest you submit a review and find out how much I adore it! :D

Until next time,

Lockea


	8. Side Story 1: Cry

**AN**: **Happy Thanksgiving** to my wonderful American readers! It's always fun going to an American school that is fifty percent international, because every year I find myself explaining the tradition behind Thanksgiving. We try to leave the genocide aspect out, of course. :D

**I feel like I may have cheated you with this chapter, for it is actually something written almost two years ago.** It was part of the original version of SoaHB, as my original plan was to describe each slave's circumstances using interludes. This one was Zexion's. I'm posting it now because many of my readers are new, and probably did not get to read it in the original story. Yet, even so, it's relevant to the story, especially in parts of Chapter Seven and in Part Two of the story as well, where focus shifts to the various organization characters who are drawn together by ye olde damn X in their name (I'm joking, of course, but they do converge nonetheless). When I wrote Zexion's scene in Chapter Seven, I realized I was never going to explicitly explain about Lexaeus, thus I decided to pull out the old guns as an apology for abandoning you during this the month of November.

**There are two more side stories after this.** They will be posted in the order they are completed. One is "**Not Your Song**" which is about Sara remembering how she and Ingus came to fall in love. It's the one that was requested by EppieandKarma. The next is "**Be Not Afraid**" and that one travels two to three years into the past and details some information about Destiny Labor Camp, which should hopefully clear up any lingering questions about the nature of Riku's life there. Oh, and both do have lyrical introductions. "Not Your Song" has "Shasta" by Vienna Teng and "Be Not Afraid" has "The Voice" by Celtic Women. And no, for those who know Vienna Teng, Sara does not have an abortion.

**Many Thanks** to the Super Amazing AND Fantastic Reviewers; **EppieandKarma **for being the only person to request a side story. **DaystoDawn **for calling on my characters to revolutionize and rebel against the unjustly cruel world they live in. And, finally, the eternally patient and amazing **Shibara**, who reviewed twice! Here's your hint: Kairi and Riku's daughter is an existing Kingdom Hearts character. she's also jokingly referred to in my notes as "plot device baby" because that's what she is.

* * *

**Side Story One: Cry**

_I hear you cry  
Locked away in your cage  
I want to try but I'm caught  
In this maze of desire_

_~Labyrinthine Heart by Sleepthief_

Zexion liked mathematics and chemistry. In school, those were his two favorite subjects. He would come home from class, begin his homework, and when Lexaeus was finally released from his job in the factory, they would lay down together while Zexion talked about chemical compounds and antiderivatives until Lexaeus had fallen asleep, lulled by the sound of Zexion's voice. It had been one of the things that made them so special as paramours.

Other days, when Demyx was around, Zexion would listen to the other teenager sing while he did his homework. Demyx loved music with much the same passion Zexion felt towards a good book, or a particularly challenging math problem. The two argued frequently – Demyx was loud, liked energy, and always wanted to move while Zexion was quiet, sedentary, and liked time to think—but on evenings as quiet as this one, there was nothing to argue about, and Zexion was able to read silently as Demyx hummed near the window. It was still light outside, and as such Xigbar and Lexaeus had yet to return from their work, leaving the two teenagers the only occupants of the cramped apartment the four shared.

"What are you reading?" Demyx asked suddenly, glancing from the window to Zexion, peering at the heavy bound tome curiously.

"The Inquiry of the Heart." Zexion replied. "It's about the philosophical discussions of Ansem the Wise, from a long time ago. I have to read it for the SIAT."

Demyx whistled, impressed. "Seriously? A book that thick?"

"It was either this or some historical fiction novel about these people who commit adultery and are killed for it in the end."

"Oh." Demyx replied, followed by a few moments of quiet. "What does adultery mean?"

Zexion sighed in annoyance, trying to find the inner patience to deal with Demyx's questions. It wasn't that the older teen was unintelligent, per se, but that the word he'd used had no context among the labor slaves. Still, it was frustrating, trying to explain things to people who did not understand. "It's when a person betrays their partner by sleeping with someone else."

Demyx continued to look confused. Zexion could practically read the thoughts going through the teenagers head—why was that such a bad thing?

"Monogamous society." Zexion huffed, as though that clarified things. "The people of that kind of society saw having sex with a person who wasn't your husband or wife— a type of permanent paramour—as a very bad thing, punishable by all sorts of unpleasant things, including death and imprisonment."

The blond teen looked like he was about to open his mouth to say something, but then closed it quickly. "That's… harsh… huh."

Zexion let himself smile a bit at that. "Well, I can't say I blame them. I mean, imagine if Xigbar betrayed your trust and decided to take another paramour without telling you? You'd be pretty upset too."

Demyx blushed, and grinned sheepishly. Zexion was right. "So… it's for the SIAT?" He asked, nodding to the book.

The silver haired teen nodded. "I'm hoping to get a high score in the social sciences portion of the aptitude battery."

"You're so smart I bet you'll get impossibly high scores in all the categories and have all these people placing bids on you. You'll get out of here."

"That's the plan." Zexion replied faintly, distracted. The Slave Intelligence and Aptitude Test, or SIAT, was Zexion's only chance of leaving Bailey Labor Camp for good. He hated the place, but it was the only home he'd known, and it was where he had lived with Demyx, Xigbar, and Lexaeus for the last seventeen years. If he got out, he'd probably never see them again.

Even though Zexion knew it, the reminder stung. Sure, he and Demyx fought most of the time, and Xigbar annoyed Zexion when he sided with Demyx in their arguments, but they were his family. They were the only people he'd connected to in his life.

_It's not what I expected. That's all…_

They settled into a peaceable silence for a few minutes before a commotion in the hallway disrupted the calm, and Xigbar burst into the apartment, looking mildly frantic. This was unusual. Xigbar, who had lived so long Zexion thought nothing would phase him, was usually the flippant, carefree one to contrast Lexaeus's stoicism. Demyx noticed too. The boy stood quickly, words falling at his lips in question.

"Xigbar?"

Xigbar ignored him, gesturing to Zexion.

"Dude, get downstairs now. There was an accident and Lex has been injured."

Zexion's heart stopped. In seconds he had dropped his book to the ground and rushed out of the room, forgetting to put on shoes to protect his feet from the tiny hazards of the factory floor.

Bailey Camp, a textile mill, was built with the factory portion on the lower part, and the residences for the slaves living there on the upper floors, with a series of narrow, creaky stairwells connecting the floors. Zexion flew down these stairwells, without heed to anyone who may get in his way, his heart panicked. Xigbar and Demyx followed him as quickly as they could.

The site that greeted the teenager as he entered the factory level, practically running despite it being unsafe to do so, was one from his worst nightmare. Lexaeus lay on the ground between the machines, with the resident healer bent over him, obscuring Zexion's view. Drawing closer, he could see the blood that covered the dusty floor, and the pained expression on Lexaeus's face. The hand that the healer cradled gently in her arms was bloodied so badly that Zexion could not see the full extent of the damage, but he knew that it had to be more than just a simple flesh wound.

"What happened?" Zexion demanded of the healer, kneeling beside Lexaeus and carefully brushing his hands across the older man's face, letting him know he was there.

The woman didn't look up, pressing white bandage cloths to the wound as she spoke. "He was resetting warp thread when the frame broke, trapping his hand between the claws. Are you one of his paramours?"

Zexion nodded. "I'm his only paramour." He explained.

"I'm sorry. I'll do the best I can, but the bone was shattered. I may have to amputate his hand."

Zexion's heart when cold for a moment. "You can't!" He hissed. "He can't work with the machines if he loses his hand. You're a healer, heal him!"

"Shh, calm down child. I will do everything I can, but… I'm very sorry, I know this is hard for you." She spoke calmly, but her face was drawn and tight. She knew already that there really was nothing more she could do. "Help me get him up off this floor. The others need to get back to work, and laying here isn't going to be doing any good."

Zexion nodded numbly, glancing again at the hand hidden under bandages. He didn't know what it looked like now, but he could remember it whole, large and comforting when Lexaeus held him close. The world couldn't touch him then, when Lexaeus had his hands on him. What would it be like without that now?

_No… don't think about it._

It took Xigbar and Demyx's help to get Lexaeus up to the empty room the four shared, and the moment they laid him down on the floor, the healer had sprung into action once again, discarding the bloodied clothes and pulling medical supplies from her bag. Without the cloth there, Zexion could see the full extent, and it made him sick to his stomach. The fingers were twisted at odd angles, and the wrist had been completely snapped. Bone fragments pierced the skin, and where they did not long gashes from the machine's sharp edges had exposed the white beneath. Zexion whispered a quick prayer to anyone out there who might be listening.

_Please don't kill my beloved._

Everything else became a blur after that, as Zexion, caught in the fatality of the moment, watched with an anxious heart as the healer examined and rewrapped Lexaeus's hand. A few hours later, and with another whispered "I'm sorry," the healer left, and Zexion laid down beside his lover and wept.

* * *

Night came far too soon for Zexion, who felt as though he's just closed his eyes when the sound of the door opening woke him up. On the other side of the room, Demyx and Xigbar disentangled themselves from each other and sat up as well. In entered the healer and two taskmasters, looking just as frightening as Zexion remembered, with their whips and batons strapped to their waists. Zexion watched warily as the healer came closer pulling a syringe and vial from her bag. "What are you doing?" He asked.

The healer trembled slightly. "I'm sorry child, but there's nothing I can do for Lexeaus. This is the best option." She filled the syringe with liquid from the vial and placed the needle near the older man's throat.

Without thinking, Zexion knocked the healer's hand away, sending the syringe clattering across the concrete floor. "You can't!" He told her, instinctively throwing himself over Lexaeus.

The healer just looked at him helplessly, before she glanced pointedly at the taskmaster. If Zexion were a cat, he might have hissed in anger, as it was he glared at her coldly. She stood and retrieved the syringe.

"Move, Zexion." She ordered him. "You cannot stop me from doing this."

"Watch me." He challenged, knocking her hand away again when she came too close, this time she didn't release her grip on the syringe. Beneath him, Lexeaus was silent but alert, watching them both expressionlessly.

"Don't do this Zexion. You're making it harder on everyone." The healer pleaded, even as one of the guards, the taller, broader one, stepped forward menacingly. Zexion refused to move, glaring at them both.

Unperturbed, the guard simply reached down and dragged the small boy away from Lexaeus. Zexion screeched in rage and struggled against the guard, flailing wildly. He knew he didn't have a chance against the guard, who probably weighed three times as much as the tiny, stick thin boy. He twisted just enough to bite the guard's arm through his uniform.

The guard shouted in surprise and released him, inspecting the damage done while Zexion stood there expression as angry and hurt as a wild cat. The skin wasn't broken, but the next thing Zexion knew the guard backhanded him hard enough to send him crashing to the floor with a sickening thump. His hands instinctively reached up to touch his bruised cheek.

"You little shit." The guard cursed, grabbing Zexion again and shaking him roughly. The boy remained frozen. "Assaulting a taskmaster, are you, you fucking brat? You know the punishment." He shoved Zexion away from him, towards the door. Zexion lost his balance and fell hard to his knees. "Fifty lashes should teach the bitch to have more respect."

"No!" This time it was Demyx's turn to shout. "You'll kill him! He's too small for that!"

Behind him, Xigbar paled, grabbing the blond haired teenager and covering his mouth. "Don't speak." He hissed in the boy's ear, fearful that the taskmaster would notice his impudence.

They watched helplessly as the taskmaster ignored him, grabbing Zexion instead and hauling him to his feet. Zexion struggled briefly, before ceasing as another blow struck his injured cheek a second time. It didn't stop him from spinning to look back at Lexaeus one last time as the healer knelt beside the silent man.

Lexaeus was silent, his face impassive as he watched his paramour with eyes that told a different story. A story of deep-set sadness and resignation, an acceptance that life was unfair, and they were going to be torn away without a thought to them. I love you. His lips whispered, and Zexion sobbed, hatred and loathing—for both himself (I am too weak) and for the healer and taskmasters—mixing with the feeling of frantic helplessness.

The last image he would have of Lexaeus, his beloved, would be of the healer, the woman who was supposed to help him, injecting him with the poison that would kill him quietly. The door slammed shut behind him, closing on the memory.

* * *

The next morning, Zexion woke to the pain in his back combined with another pain, a pressure in his lower spine, and the feeling of two pairs of arms wrapped gently around him. Demyx and XIgbar had him sandwiched in between, being careful not to touch the inflamed lash marks left from the beating he'd received the night before. Carefully, very carefully, and with the stiffness of pain, he disentangled himself from the two, standing gingerly on the cold concrete.

Last night was a blur for Zexion. All he really remembered was Lexaeus… and being tied to the whipping post on the first floor… and then searing pain. The violation he blessedly couldn't recall, it must have happened after he passed out. Zexion gently pressed his hand against the sphincter muscle, probing the pained skin gently. It stung horribly, but the hand that came away was free of blood and semen. Someone must have cleaned him when he'd been unconscious. Perhaps the same healer who had killed Lexaeus had treated him, he wondered bitterly.

_Stop thinking about it._

Zexion cast a quick glance around the room, looking for his clothes. They were missing. He found, instead, one of Lexaeus's oversized shirts and pulled it on over his head, wincing as cotton fabric brushed against his back. Beneath the shirt lay the book he'd been reading yesterday. Somehow it had gotten covered in blood from when they'd brought Lexaeus into the room. Randomly, Zexion flipped it open and read a passage from the page.

"We were most keen in answering, then, from whence the illusion of emotions came…"

_Illusion…_

Zexion held the book and stared numbly at his bare feet and the cold floor, unable to cry, and feeling like he'd never be able to feel again.

Two weeks later, Zexion took the SIAT.

Another two weeks after that, his profile came in. His scores were in the 34th persentile and above. They were scores that spoke of an intelligence so desirable there was almost no chance he wouldn't be bought away.

Another week later, Zexion was sold to the Radiant Garden Biochemical Laboratory, owned by a man named Xemnas.

Just over a month after Lexaeus died, Zexion watched his life fall apart, and couldn't help but wonder why he wanted it to be this way. Why it had to be this way.

* * *

**AN:** And with that, I now command you to go look at cute pictures of puppies. See, Zexion does have a reason for acting like a jackass towards Rosa. It doesn't make it right, but it is what it is. Umm... I can't say anything for "Be Not Afraid" as I haven't decided how that ends (I'm thinking cute and fluffy, but with me cute and fluffy often means dark and barely happy), but EppieandKarma kind of tied my hands with "Not Your Song", which is guaranteed to have a happy ending.

Please** remember to feed the review monster**. As the authoress is currently embroiled in replaying Kingdom Hearts AND playing Re:COM for the first time, not feeding the review monster might just result in no more story, and then we would all be sad. :(

Until next time.

Lockea


	9. Side Story 2: Not Your Song

**AN**: Here it is! EppieandKarma's request story. **I'm going to go back to focusing on Chapter Seven now that I've reached my word goal and won NaNoWriMo** (my novel was too short - only 40,000 or so words, so I started the side stories to boost my word count. I submitted and won last night). Anyway, I will keep working on "Be Not Afraid" and will get that out as soon as it's finished. It might end up being a Christmas present though. :)

This story was fun to write, actually, because I knew from the beginning the "conflict" was going to be contrived and idiotic, yet I didn't care. I couldn't make it deeper because then I'd have to elevate Ingus from minor character to central character and, as one reviewer pointed out, there's already too many characters. :) Plus, it's more about the characters anyway. Still, it was fun to write about the two of them. Though, I couldn't resist throwing in some plot devices such as the cherry tree (cough) and the mysterious relationship between the Director and Riku's mother. This story operates on two degrees - everyone is no more than two people removed from another character. Oh, also, **if you don't like het, don't read this side story**! There's an obnoxious amount of het in it, especially for me. Also avoid if you hate WAFF (warm and fuzzy feeling)

**Many epic thanks** to my reviewers: **EppieandKarma **for making me laugh really hard when I read her review for the first time, and for forcing me to write the first happy, het story I've written in... oh... about four years now. :) To **Segaaa **for making me ridiculously happy when she called my writing seductive. Lastly, to **anon**. I usually leave very long replies even for short reviews, but I'm afraid I'll have to keep this short for you. Thank you for the review. I'm glad it intrigued you. When I originally began conceiving this story, it was always an ensemble piece. There are dozens of tiny little threads - lives that seem unconnected and distant, yet each has a story. SoaHB is about the way these tiny threads converge into one tapestry of a greater story about mistakes, regrets, love, and hope. By the end of chapter ten, you'll begin to see what I mean as people begin to meet and individual paths turn into group stories. Still, I understand that the slow going means SoaHB isn't for everyone.

* * *

**Side Story Two: Not Your Song**

_So far so good  
You try to sing along to the radio  
But it's not your language not your song  
It's from some other time ago_

_And you're thinking about how someone died that day  
The you that was so carefully planned  
But then again maybe this life is like a sleeping mountain  
Waking up to shape the land.  
~"Shasta", _by Vienna Teng

The phone rang one evening. Ingus was asleep on the couch and Sara was busy balancing their checkbook and paying bills which were quickly becoming overdue. Strange how quickly their world had shrunk again, after freedom had felt so liberating. Strange how, only three years ago, they'd exchanged vows beneath the cherry tree in the center of Radiant Garden, and signed the contract which bound them to each other not with chains, but with a love that had forever been present.

Sara caught the phone on the first ring, worried that it might wake Ingus up. The man was a ridiculously light sleeper, to the point of bordering on an insomniac at times when even the smallest whisper could wake him up. "Altney residence, may I ask who's calling?"

On the other end of the line, a female voice said, "This is Elmyra Gainsborough . I'm looking for Ingus Altney."

Sara glanced over to the couch where Ingus had passed out over an hour ago. She's tossed the throw over him so he wouldn't get cold. "He's asleep right now. Can you leave a message?"

"Of course I can, child. Tell him Dr. Gainsborough called and I have the results back from his blood work. If he could call me back, I'd like to make an appointment to go over them with him." The woman explained kindly.

Tests? Appointments? Doctors? Sara hadn't heard anything about this! Ingus usually told her everything. It was part of the promise they made when they were younger; no secrets from one another. "I will let him know." She answered sweetly, and hung up.

Ingus sat up on the couch. "Who called?" He asked drowsily, still waking up from his nap.

"A woman named Elmyra Gainsborough. She said you're blood work came back and she wants to make an appointment to see you." Sara tried to carefully keep any accusation out of her tone. It would do no good to jump to conclusions or make accusations. "What's all this about?"

"Nothing, really." Ingus answered softly, as he made his way to the table and picked up the discarded cordless phone. "Hopefully, it's just routine."

"Ingus." Sara said, in the tone of voice she often took with Sora and Roxas when they were trying to pull a fast one on her. The one that said 'I am very disappointed in you right now.' "No secrets, remember? We promised."

"I don't really feel like talking about it right now." Ingus said instead as he picked up the phone and walked away.

Sara crossed her arms, just a little more than hurt.

* * *

_Eighteen years prior_

The Hikaru mansion was brightly decorated in vibrant yellows, greens, reds, blues, and oranges. The rainbow of bold, bright colors reflected in the balloons, streamers, confetti, and even the brilliant scarves the staff and slaves wore around their necks, special for the occasion. Lady Hikaru had spared no expense for the fifth birthday of her only son, Cloud Hikaru.

Sara tried not to mope about and let her jealously show as she shadowed her mother about the manor as the woman attended to the final details of the impending party. But this was easier said than done. Sara's eighth birthday party had consisted of cake and presents, a quiet affair celebrated only by Sara, her mother, Ingus, and Freya. Compared to the banquet of Cloud's party, Sara's had been little more than a snack, and it irked the girl immensely.

"Don't mope about!" Shara admonished Sara, when the little girl had brought it up. "Cloud's a noble. Things are different for them." This was how Shara explained most things to Sara. Ingus wore a collar because he was a slave, and things were different for slaves. Cloud went to a fancy school because he was a noble, and things were different for nobles. Chelinka never showed the same affection towards her son as Freya and Shara showed towards their children because Lady Hikaru was a powerful and influential researcher. On and on it went. Sara was beginning to think everything happened by complete and random chance… just because.

When Sara got bored, she decided to search out Ingus to play with him. At least he usually let her win, even though Sara was careful to make sure he won some of their games as well. She found the eight-year-old on the porch with Deusericus, the two of them absorbed in their own books as they shared a seat on the porch swing. Deusericus was Chelinka's husband, though Sara's mother had explained that he was neither a lord nor a commoner, but merely something caught somewhere in between. At that age, Sara didn't know what any of that meant, only that she liked the quiet, solemn young man who always seemed to have a treat on hand for her and Ingus.

He glanced up when he saw Sara standing there and offered the little girl a warm smile. "Finally decided to seek out some sanity, did you?" He questioned, gesturing for her to take a seat on his other side. Ingus glanced up from his book, expression unreadable.

Sara nodded, and jumped up on the porch swing on Deusericus's other side. "It's so boring! Why does Cloud get to have such a big party anyway?"

Deusericus shrugged and pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose, a gesture most common when he was thinking. "In Chelinka's mind, simple does not exist. She only wants what's best for her son." He paused, then added, "Not that Shara and Freya don't want what's best for the two of you, either, but things are different when you're a noble. You can't just enjoy something for the sake of enjoying it without there being some ulterior motive." He sighed, as though this particularly realization depressed him.

Ingus turned to face Deusericus, his expression completely deadpan as he assessed, "That's too complicated! Why doesn't everyone live simply?"

Deusericus's smile was wry as he said, "Yes, why don't we?" He closed his book and stood up. "Run along, you too. I have to go see what my darling wife is up to. If you see Cloud, please keep him distracted so he doesn't get underfoot."

Sara had absolutely no desire to reenter the chaos from which she'd most recently escaped, so she remained seated long after Deusericus had departed. Ingus, who normally followed Sara's cue on all things, despite being a few months older than her, remained seated as well. When they were alone, Sara leaned over to investigate the book that Ingus was reading. "'Myths and Legends of Radiant Garden'." She read aloud. "Is it good?"

"Of course it is, Sara. Master Deusericus gave it to me." Ingus flipped open to a page with an illustration of a mountain and a small, robed man with over-large round ears standing at the pinnacle with a sword raised to the heavens. "'King Mortimer," Ingus read from the text on the accompanying page, "was known most for his wisdom and his cunning. He tricked the dark god who ruled the land and forged the first light. Yet he alone was not enough to drive back the dark god. So he called upon three youths in his employ and blessed them with the power to open hearts and unleash the light within. This gift was called the keyblade, and each youth used their keyblade to bath the emptiness in light, and from the light a radiant garden was born. King Mortimer, seeing what had come to pass, thus named the kingdom he borne Radiant Garden, and it knew prosperity."

"That's so silly!" Sara said, afterwards. "There's no way a device like that exists, let alone was responsible for the birth of a kingdom! Remember what teacher said? Years ago, the nomadic people of Figaro and Dalmasca came south because they didn't like where they were living. They built Radiant Garden. King Mortimer was just the king who handed it over to Ansem when it became obvious that Ansem was the better leader."

"This version's more interesting." Ingus said with a shrug, not bothering to get angry at Sara's accusations. "I think it's better to believe the pretty version than remember the ugly one."

Sara, never one to lose an argument or let Ingus have the last word, opened her mouth to argue back, but shut it when she saw Cloud walk out onto the porch. The five year old was dragging a stuffed animal with him, the bears head thumping against the floorboard with every step.

"Good morning Cloud!" Sara greeted at the same time Ingus added in a softer tone, "Morning young master."

Cloud stopped and grinned, showing off nice white baby teeth. Sara subconsciously felt in her mouth where her incisor tooth had fallen out just two days prior. Her mother had wrapped it up for her and taken it to the temple to be offered as a prayer for Sara's continued good health. Cloud was too young to lose teeth yet. "Morning Sara! Ingus! Guess what today is!"

Sara rolled her eyes, but Ingus had the patience of a monk. "What is today, Master Cloud?"

"My birthday! Did you get me lots of presents?" He crawled up onto the bench in between Sara and Ingus, in the space that Deusericus had vacated.

"I'm sure your parents got you lots of presents." Sara bit out, crossing her arms over her chest. She didn't want to play with Cloud. Cloud was a baby, and spoiled too. Hmph. Why did he get to have the big birthday celebration anyway?

Ingus decided to change the subject before Sara said something that would upset the five-year-old. "Are you excited for the party?"

Cloud nodded. "There's going to be a big cake, and games, and friends, and presents, and clowns, and horses. Mommy said so."

"Sounds terribly exciting." Ingus never let the tone of his voice change from politely interested. Sara was jealous of the slave's ability to mask his emotions. Was that something slaves inherited naturally? After all, Freya was equally talented at simply putting up a wall that hid all thoughts from view.

Cloud, being five, didn't notice. He propped his teddy bear up beside him and said, "Pooh bear here says it would be better if there was honey, so I asked Mommy for honey for Pooh."

With the topic changed from the party, and Ingus and Cloud engaged in a conversation about Cloud's stuffed animals, Sara crossed her arms and leaned back, resigning herself to her own childish jealousy.

* * *

_Present Day_

Odd, Sara thought when she woke up the next morning, Ingus's arms wrapped around her waist in a warm embrace. Sara didn't dream, period. Yet for some reason the memory of Cloud's birthday had become lodged in her head. She rolled over and kissed Ingus's cheek, reluctant to wake him. The clock read four-oh-two am, so Ingus still had another half hour with which to sleep in. She got up anyway, took a shower, and made some tea.

It was a shame, Sara mused as she sat down at the kitchen table, that she an Ingus never seemed to cook in their kitchen. Sara made all the meals for the entire Hikaru family, and thus for Ingus and herself as well. She supposed that when she and Ingus had a child of their own, all that would change. It wouldn't do to raise their child as she herself had been raised. The child deserved a chance to be something other than a servant to a noble family.

Half an hour later, Ingus woke up and took his own shower. Sara poured him a mug of tea as well and greeted him with a kiss when he emerged from the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist. After all, what need did he to have for modesty around his own wife. Sara found herself fascinated with his back, which was free of scars. The few times Ingus had misbehaved enough to warrant true discipline, Lady Hikaru had taken a belt to his backside. It had welted and hurt, but eventually it healed with no sign of it ever existing.

In contrast there was Riku's back. Sara didn't know why she thought of the Hikaru family's young slave. The boy was a lot like Ingus, in many ways, quiet and solemn. But his desire for something greater than what he'd been born to, that desire which pushed him to study so hard in hopes of gaining his freedom, that was markedly different from Ingus, who passively accepted his place in life. Riku's back was marked by scars, including the terribly disfiguring one which had tightened the muscles in his shoulder and destroyed his range of freedom. It was easy to forget most days, but just yesterday she'd watched as Riku began to reach for something in the cupboard, stopped half way, and reached instead with his other arm.

Sara shook the thought from her mind and asked Ingus, "So, what are your plans for the day?"

Ingus shrugged and took a sip of his tea. "This morning I have an appointment at the clinic. This afternoon the Director has asked me to check on progress with the new reactor experiments."

"You never mentioned having a doctor's appointment." Sara said carefully, trying to keep any accusation out of her voice.

"I didn't want to alarm you. It's just a routine check-up."

"But you had a routine check-up two weeks ago."

Ingus stood up and put his mug in the sink. He retreated back to the bedroom to get dressed. Sara didn't follow him. She didn't want to be a harpy and pry too much into his life. He wasn't a slave anymore – he was entitled to some privacy at least. Yet… they'd sworn to each other at their wedding that they would not keep secrets from each other.

Sara sighed, and decided to let it go for now. Ingus would tell her when he was ready. He always had before.

* * *

_Fifteen Years Prior_

The first rock hit Ingus squarely between his shoulder blades, and though the slave winced he did little more than keep walking. It was when the second rock missed, skittering off of Sara's shoulder instead, that all hell broke loose. Sara spun around to see a group of classmates standing some distance behind them, almost to the gates leading onto the school grounds. They were holding a handful of small rocks, no bigger than Sara's thumb really, in their hands.

"What are you doing?" Sara questioned coldly, with all the authority she could summon in her small eleven-year-old body. Beside her, Ingus merely raised on hand and placed in on her arm in a placating manner, an unspoken plea to let it be. But Sara, quite frankly, was sick of listening to these cretins tease and torment Ingus simply because of the leather and iron collar he wore around his neck.

One boy, the leader of the band of bullies, laughed and jested, "We're playing target practice. Your stupid slave boyfriend is the target and we're practicing."

Sara raised one eyebrow. She knew from experience that it wasn't always a good idea to get angry straight off. The last time she'd tried that, those stupid bullies had dragged Ingus behind the school and beaten him until his eye had turned black and swollen shut. Meanwhile, Ingus hadn't lifted a finger to defend himself, more afraid of the state-required whipping that was punishment for attacking a free person than he was of any damage those meanies could do. "I think your aim needs work." She responded drolly.

The leader flushed bright red and stamped his foot against the ground. "S-shut up, you stupid slave lover! You're no better than he is. Slave lover!"

Ingus squeezed Sara's arm gently and said, "Let's go, Sara. They're not worth our time."

Sara wanted to protest, but the words died on her lips when she looked into Ingus's eyes. She knew, from experience if from nothing else, that Ingus would be the one to suffer if she continued trying to fight these bullies.

"Yes." She sighed. "Let's go home."

The jeering continued, punctuated now by the rocks the bullies threw at both of them. It frayed on Sara's nerves until, softly, she heard Ingus whisper, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me."

"Do you really believe that?" She questioned, surprised. They'd both heard Deusericus say the same thing, often when admonishing young Cloud for getting in fights at school. Stupid, Sara had thought of the man, of course words could hurt you. They cut deeper than any stick or stone possibly could.

Ingus nodded. He glanced back behind himself briefly and said, "Most days, I have to in order to get by."

Sara wrapped her arms around him in a comforting hug, and together they walked home from school.

* * *

_Present Day_

Sara would be lying to herself if she didn't admit that she was a creature of routine. She craved it, enjoyed it, delighted in the familiar.

That being said, there was really nothing routine about her mornings anymore, nor had there been any semblance of routine since Riku had entered their house only a few weeks prior. With a sigh, the maid set two slices of toast – butter, no jam because that made Riku sick – and a cup of herbal tea – again, no sugar for the sake of Riku's delicate stomach – out on the breakfast counter just as the silver haired teenager entered the kitchen for breakfast that morning.

"Morning Sara." The boy greeted politely, as he always did, taking a seat at the counter. This morning, it was just the two of them, because Ingus had gone for his mysterious doctor's appointment and Cloud had informed Sara last night that he planned to spend the night at his friend Tifa's place. Not that Sara's job included keeping track of Cloud, who was an adult and could do as he pleased without letting her know.

"Good morning Riku. Did you sleep well last night?" Sara asked politely, already turning her attention away from him into order to pull a breakfast quiche from the oven.

"As well as any, I suppose." That was how Riku tended to answer any question Sara asked him – with a non-answer. Sara had figured out rather quickly that the boy didn't do it on purpose, rather that he'd learned a sort of placating diplomacy some years ago and had yet to fully separate what people wanted to hear from what he actually wanted to say.

A comfortable silence fell between them, as Riku ate and Sara began dishing the quiche out onto plates for breakfast. With Cloud and Ingus gone, Sara had some leftover. She served up an extra plate and set it before Riku. "Try some of this."

The boy eyed it warily. Thus far there'd been exactly two breakfast dishes that Sarah had made that hadn't ended with Riku throwing up his breakfast before it even had a chance to settle. "What is it?"

"Quiche. It's beaten eggs, milk, spinach, broccoli, and cheese. The crust is just flour, salt, and shortening – solidified vegetable oil."

Tentatively, Riku took a bite of the food and Sara unconsciously held her breath. They both waited for a few minutes before Riku finally took another bite. "It's good." He complimented.

Sara breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad. If it doesn't make you sick, I'll make it more often. I've been worried about you getting enough protein."

Riku laughed lightly. "You worry too much."

It was true, so Sara smiled and replied, "Someone has to."

While Riku ate, Sara brought the rest of the food to the dining room for the Hikaru family to eat. When she returned, Riku had finished and was washing dishes without being told. Sara began drying them off and putting them away. After a moment, she asked. "Were you ever teased as a child, Riku?"

The slave shrugged. "Sure. Lots." He said, almost too lightly. "We all were, even though between the five of us we made up a quarter of our grade. Teased, beaten, nearly raped on one occasion."

"What?" Sara slammed the pot she was drying down on the counter, sending stray flecks of water onto her pinafore.

Riku startled at the loud noise, but recovered quickly, his hands trembling very faintly as he responded, "What, did that never happen to Ingus?"

"No! It most certainly did not! He was teased and bullied and beaten up a few times but never… never _that_! What happened?"

Riku shrugged. "I had to stay late one day to talk to a teacher. Kairi waited for me at the gate. Some classmates saw her and dragged her off behind the school. I came out, heard her scream, and ran to find her. There were only two of them, and I knew some pretty dangerous self defense moves, so it wasn't hard to get them off of her." He shrugged again, and managed a small smile as though it was just another day in his life. Why did Riku's stories always unnerve Sara so much? Was it because she was realizing just how sheltered Ingus had been? That compared to Riku, Ingus had barely been a slave at all?

"But… weren't you punished for attacking someone free?" Sara asked, feeling morbid fascination rise in her gut.

Riku nodded. "Sixty lashes. It's how I got this scar." He pulled up his shirt to show off where a long white gnarled scar traced the contour of his ribcage. His smile turned distinctly smug as he added, "But it was worth it to save Kairi."

Sara couldn't help herself. She set down her towel and wrapped her arms around Riku. Hugging him tight to her chest. "I'm sorry that happened to you."

Riku didn't shrug her off, but merely stared at the water. After a minute of silence he said, "Sara… that's what happens to slaves. There's nothing to apologize for."

* * *

_Nine years prior_

They'd just finished eating dinner – Palom and Porom were helping Shara clean off the kitchen table and begin the process of washing dishes – when Lady Chelinka walked into the kitchen, carrying a thick manila folder.

Palom noticed first. "How's it swinging boss lady?" He greeted, giving the blond haired noblewoman a soapy, wet fingered salute. His sister, Porom, swatted at him playfully with the towel.

Chelinka smiled at both of them, used to the antics of her two overly energetic assistants, but she had not come into the kitchen to talk to them. "Ingus." She stated, turning piercing blue eyes on the slave in question, who was currently still at the table, mending one of his shirts where the seam had fallen out. He looked up when his name was called, and Chelinka took a seat beside him at the table, placing the manila folder in front of him. "I received a copy of your SIAT scores today."

Ingus nodded and set the shirt and needle aside, reaching out tentatively to open the folder. Sara, who was sitting beside Ingus with her own sewing project – an embroidered shawl for her mother – glanced over Ingus to see the folder, not at all trying to hide her interest.

"Thirty." Ingus read from the first page.

Chelinka nodded. "Not at all a bad score, though a bit lower than what I'd normally accept. Still, you have promise. How about it? Would you like to become one of my assistants?"

Porom had set down her towel and wandered over to look at Ingus's scores as well. From across the kitchen, Palom shouted, "Yeah! Come join us! It'd be like a party."

But Ingus shook his head. "Thank you, Mistress, but I am content to simply be."

Sara frowned. "But don't you want to go to college?" She asked, even as Chelinka was already gathering up the profile. "You always listen to Palom and Porom's stories so intently." Indeed, Sara had assumed that Ingus did want to pursue a higher education, since he always seemed so single-mindedly focused on schoolwork and maintaining high grades. She'd thought that, perhaps, he wanted to someday work in Chelinka's laboratory.

Ingus glanced hesitantly between Chelinka and Sara, before finally settling his gaze back on Sara. Calmly, he explained. "I am content here. And, with no disrespect meant for my gracious mistress, I have no desire to add more debt to my bond, not when it is so close to being paid off."

If Ingus expected to Chelinka to be mad, then he was disappointed, for the noblewoman merely smiled softly and said, "I don't blame you. Were it me, not even the thought of having free run of the lab would be enough to sway me from the tangible presence of freedom. How much is left, anyway? Six years?"

Ingus smiled. "Thereabouts." He said, at the same time Sara chimed in. "And two months!" Ingus reached out grabbed Sara's hand in his, squeezing gently.

"We've been counting down the days." He explained. "We want to get married as soon as the bond is released."

Chelinka smiled warmly, and rose enough to kiss Ingus gently on the forehead. It was a motherly gesture, from a woman who had always been more like a mother than a mistress, though it had only begun after Freya had died unexpectedly when Ingus had still been a child. Before then, Chelinka had been coldly detached, even towards her sons. "You are very much like Deusericus, Ingus. Always planning so far ahead with all the excitement of youth." To Sara she added solemnly, "You two will make such a lovely couple. You've been careful about contraceptives, correct?"

Sara blushed, and with an embarrassed glance at her own mother, who was stern-facedly observing the interaction, she nodded.

"Good! I'd hate to see you two end up in a terrible situation like that. It's not something any young couple should experience." With that, Chelinka snapped the folder on the table and stood up. She nodded to Shara and left, her business finished.

When she was gone, Palom whistled. "Sara and Ingus sitting in a tree!"

Porom rolled her eyes. "Oh, grow up." She muttered, yanking on Palom's braid, a coil of auburn hair which reached almost to his knees and was his pride and joy. Palom squawked indignantly and swatted at his twin sister, throwing droplets of soapy water across the kitchen.

Shara said with a sigh, "You're almost an adult Sara, but I could have lived without knowing about your sex life."

Sara blushed scarlet and screeched, "Mom! It's not like I wanted you to know!"

And in the midst of all the chaos, Ingus leaned back in his chair, covered his face with his hand, and began to laugh.

* * *

_Present day_

Dinner was a quiet affair. It usually was. Afterwards, Ingus and Sara sat across from each other at the table where, so many years ago, Sara had asked Ingus to marry her. The wood was worn and rough, water stained and faded. Her mother had once said, "This table has seen families and children born, homework completed and meals prepared, food passed from one person to another. This table has seen the winters go by, and the death of loved ones, but it has also seen summer, and the light of life that exists within us all."

Now, as Sara sat across from Ingus, she wondered if more than just the table was keeping the two of them apart. Words of a poem, half forgotten in her mind, rose up. _We are not together here._ She realized.

Politely, she asked, "How did your doctor's appointment go?"

Instead of evading her questions as he had this morning, Ingus said, "Well. I hope to have the results back soon."

"What are you being tested for?" Sara asked, the curiosity killing her.

Ingus met her gaze and said, "I'll tell you when the results come back."

Sara stood up and left the kitchen without another word. She didn't want to face Ingus right now, not when her hands shook with anger and frustration. She headed for the front porch, her usual place to go when the kitchen wasn't relaxing enough. She was, then, mildly surprised to see the Director seated on the porch swing, engrossed in a book read by lamplight.

"Good evening, Director." Sara greeted politely, taking a seat on the porch swing.

The Director looked up, and pushed his glasses up his nose like he used to when they'd been younger. "Evening, Sara. What brings you out here?"

Sara sighed and glanced up at the stars, which were beginning to emerge in the sea of the sky, one by one little lights. "Did you ever fight with Lady Hikaru?"

The Director closed his book and stared up at the stars as well. "All the time, especially when we first got married."

This surprised Sara, because in her early memories of the Director, he was always the calm, quiet one. Always yielding to his wife's every demand. He couldn't see the two of them fighting with each other anymore than she could see Ingus keeping secrets. Except that Ingus was keeping secrets, so it made sense that the Director fought with his wife.

The Director seemed to sense this, because he asked, "Why? Having a fight with your husband right now?"

Sara shook her head. "I'm trying to keep it from getting there, but it's hard."

"When I got married, Chelinka's father informed me that it was never a good idea to go to bed angry with your spouse, but I didn't listen because a woman wiser than he had given me better advice. She'd said, it's okay to be angry. It's okay to rage against the world and maybe your partner. It's okay to feel emotions and sometimes withhold forgiveness for wrongs done. Just don't ever let anger turn to hatred, for that's when it's destructive power sets in." The Director rose and stretched. He turned to Sara and said, "A relationship without conflict isn't a relationship at all – it's a power dichotomy. He's not your slave, but neither are you slave to him."

"Who told you that?" Sara asked curiously. The Director never talked about his early life, from before he got married. This was the very first time he'd ever even mentioned it to Sara, though Sara had known because her mother had told her, once, long ago.

With a wry smile, the Director said, "Riku's mother, Lucrecia, actually. Back when she was about the same age as Roxas and Sora are now. Though, it doesn't look like she passed on that particular piece of advice onto her son."

To say that Sara was shocked would have been an understatement. The Director had known Riku's mother? How? When? She opened her mouth to ask these questions but closed it when the Director added, "Those secrets are for another time. You should go have a fight with your husband. It's best not to let wounds like this fester."

Sara nodded and stared at her feet, remaining on the porch swing until long after the Director had departed.

_

* * *

Three Years Prior_

There was a superstition about the cherry tree in the center of Radiant Garden, located quietly in a clearing in the park there. They said that it had been there from the beginning. In the legends, it was the first thing that sprouted when the keyblades unlocked the light, but more likely than not it had always been there. Planted at the very beginning. Yet the stories went that any promise made underneath its leaves would always be kept. This was the place where hearts connected.

It was early spring, and the cherry blossoms had just begun to bloom – a sea of pink across the blue sky. It was chilly out still, and everyone huddled in their jackets. Ingus stood beneath the tree, the priest from the temple of Minerva beside him. All eyes turned to Sara when she appeared, dressed in the green wedding gown she'd borrowed from her mother, the one with tiny pink flowers like cherry blossoms embroidered into the fitted bodice. Sara's eyes, however, were only on Ingus. The man she'd loved her whole life.

Then they were standing beneath the tree, and the priest was speaking, telling about Minerva's blessing on her children. It was a story Sara knew by heart, but he might as well have been speaking a different language. Her hands were in Ingus's and the man was smiling at her in a way that made her heart flutter like a shy school girl with her first crush. Strange how Ingus had so much power of her – for love was the most frightening power of all – yet he would never use it against her, just as Sara would never use her power over him against him.

Then there were vows. Sara spoke first. "I, Sara, swear before the goddess who protects us all to love and honor my husband, to cherish him. To stand behind him through the worst of times, the best of times, and everything in between. My life is his, and between us I vow to never keep secrets." With those words, she slipped the wedding band – a bracelet made of platinum, diamond, and emerald – around his wrist.

"I, Ingus, swear before the goddess who has delivered us all to love and honor my wife, to cherish her. I vow to respect her, to stay by her side when she's sick or healthy, overjoyed or frightened. Between us there can be no secrets, this I vow." He slipped his own band, a simpler ring of silver, zircon, and sapphire, around her wrist.

Together, they said. "And with this vow of words unbroken, my life to you I now do swear. To stay, for all eternity, with you."

Beneath the cherry tree in the early spring, before Sara had even become used to seeing Ingus without the collar he'd worn for so long, two people in love made a promise. And Sara could only hope that promise would remain. Unbroken.

* * *

_Present day_

Sara meant to talk to Ingus and confront him about the secrets, she really did. But when she saw him again, she realized that she honestly didn't have the heart to. Somehow, forcing Ingus to tell her what he was hiding felt even less equalitarian than not fighting apparently was. She decided that, rather than let it become a wedge between the two of them, it was best to let the matter drop completely.

So she did, and she'd nearly forgotten about it until a few days later when the phone rang again. Ingus picked it up this time, and after a brief conversation hung up and said to Sara, "I have another appointment tomorrow."

Sara merely raised an eyebrow. "I'll let the Director know you won't be coming in."

Her husband shook his head. "I want you to come with me this time. The results from my latest test are in and I want you there with me."

"Why?"

Ingus sat down at the table and put his hands over Sara's. "I want you to know what's happening, and it will be easier for me if you're there with me, with Dr. Gainsborough there to help me tell you."

"All right." Sara nodded, and the next morning she found herself at Kadowaki Medical Center, sitting in one of the examination rooms as Dr. Gainsborough's daughter, a sweet young slave who had introduced herself as Aerith, performed the routine vitals check on Ingus.

Sara was nervous, fidgety and unable to sit still. Ingus had somehow managed to make all this seem both routine and dire all at once. She jumped when the door opened and Dr. Gainsborough – a free woman in her early forties – walked in, a clipboard underneath one arm. Sara immediately moved to Ingus's side, even as Dr. Gainsborough smiled and said, "I have good news for the two of you."

"About what?" Sara asked. "Ingus hasn't told me anything."

At Dr. Gainsborough's pointed stare, Ingus looked sheepish and said, "I didn't want to worry her, in case it turned out to be nothing."

Dr. Gainsborough rolled her eyes and offered Sara a sympathetic smile. "Men." She teased lightly. "They think they can handle it all on their own, never mind that they worry the rest of us to death."

Ingus did, on his part, look properly chastised. "Sorry. I thought it would be best if I didn't say anything at all but," he met Sara's eyes, "I was wrong."

Sara squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. "We're married. Remember our vows? To always lean on the other for support? I'm here for you so you don't have to carry everything on your own. Now, tell me what this is about."

Dr. Gainsborough stepped in before Ingus had a chance to open his mouth. "It's really about nothing at all." She explained. "Ingus complained of fatigue and muscle pain, so I ran a blood test. When the results came back with a low blood count, I ran another test to be sure it wasn't Myeloma – a cancer of the blood cells. These are the results." She held up her clipboard and handed it over to Ingus, who took it without looking at it.

Sara gently reached over Ingus's shoulder and flipped to the page that contained the final diagnosis. "Acute Anemia." She read aloud. "'Recommended to take iron supplements and eat plenty of red meat.'" She laughed and hugged Ingus around his shoulders. "We can do that!"

Ingus hugged her back, turning to bury his face in Sara's shoulder, where her hair cascaded freely over her shoulders. He didn't say a word, but then again he didn't have to. Sara sighed and gently stroked his hair. "Oh Ingus, we swore to face down the future together, so we wouldn't have to go alone. When you're worried or sad, angry or scared. Tell me. It's why I'm here."

"I know Sara." Ingus shifted slightly, and sat back up. "Come what may, let's face it together from now on."

* * *

**AN**: Yay! Happy ending! *Tries to remember the last time she wrote a story with a happy ending. Fails*

To explain the lyrics from Shasta since they aren't immediately obvious, the first part, especially the lines "_You try to sing along to the radio / But it's not your language not your song"_ refers to the way Sara becomes thrown off balance when Ingus starts keeping secrets from her. In the second paragraph, the first two lines have to do with the fact that not only is Sara a control freak, she's also very idealistic at times. Yet even so, her life's not as she imagined it. The last two lines refer to the fact that, even though it's not what she had in mind, it's still a wonderful life full of love and promise. This is actually unusually esoteric of me. Normally I'm more straightforward when it comes to music. The other Vienna Teng line is "We are not together here." And it's from the song "Between."

**Minerva**, for those who are unfamiliar, is the incarnation of the Lifestream in the FF7 Complication. Radiant Garden is made up of several nations which were either conquered or converged, resulting in a rich mix of religious diversity. The nobles, however, are mostly atheist with a few exceptions (Laguna, a lesser noble, follows Hyne; the Director believes in Yevon).

Palom and Porom's appearances are based on their design in Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. This is why Palom has long hair.

**Next Time**: Chapter Seven (hopefully, then the next side story). Riku angsts. Squall starts talking. Sora gets bad advice from his friends. More angst. Cloud offers relationship advice.

**Remember to feed the review monster**. It's much appreciated.

Until next time,

Lockea


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